Topic: Xherdan Shaqiri - Sponsored by The Cube

[Keith Lard]

If you were given a straight choice between have Shaqiri or Fekir in the squad, who would you choose? Same wages, etc ... all being equal money wise.

Knowing what I know now, Shaqiri hands down.

[RedForeverTT]

If you were given a straight choice between have Shaqiri or Fekir in the squad, who would you choose? Same wages, etc ... all being equal money wise.

Knowing what I know now, Shaqiri hands down.

Hard to say never seeing Fekir played for us. But I would have Fekir here in a heartbeat. Shame it didn't work out.

[kcbworth]

Thank god we've got him this season. Close to our most inform player

[Felch Aid]

He's settled in and offers so much - protects the ball, passing, creating and dead ball delivery.

No need to be a bit part player or sub for me given the option and form of others.

[bird_lfc]

Great signing for such a low fee in today's market. Arguably one of our players of the season so far to be honest.

[Paul1611]

really pleased to see his energy and enthusiasm to press as well.  Still not quite the finished article, but doing very well so far.

[The Test]

If you were given a straight choice between have Shaqiri or Fekir in the squad, who would you choose? Same wages, etc ... all being equal money wise.

Knowing what I know now, Shaqiri hands down.

Definitely room for both in the squad. Especially since Fekir can cover the false 9 spot and XS can play wide.

[LallanaInPyjamas]

Good game. Should take free kicks more

This is doing my head in. Trent scored one against Hoffenheim and thinks he's David Beckham. Henderson hasn't taken a good free-kick in about five years. Van Dijk?! Get off it and leave the expert set-piece taker to it!

[El Lobo]

This is doing my head in. Trent scored one against Hoffenheim and thinks he's David Beckham. Henderson hasn't taken a good free-kick in about five years. Van Dijk?! Get off it and leave the expert set-piece taker to it!

When did Henderson take one? 

[LallanaInPyjamas]

When did Henderson take one? 

Against Chelsea when Shaqiri wanted it.

[Roger Federer]

He's better than I though before he joined. I knew he was talented, but had the impression that he wasn't much a worker, the way Klopp demands. That impression seems way off. He's had a great start here, long may it continue.

[Raid]

This is doing my head in. Trent scored one against Hoffenheim and thinks he's David Beckham. Henderson hasn't taken a good free-kick in about five years. Van Dijk?! Get off it and leave the expert set-piece taker to it!

VVD had a decent record at Celtic.

But yes, Shaq is of course a specialist so should get more of them

[Smellytrabs]

Thought he was brilliant yesterday. What a signing this guy is.

[LallanaInPyjamas]

Definitely room for both in the squad. Especially since Fekir can cover the false 9 spot and XS can play wide.

Not convinced. Felt at the time Shaqiri was the Plan B to Fekir. Now that Shaqiri has hit the ground running, there's more of a void for a winger like Barca's Dembele in our squad than Fekir.

[stockdam]

We will have to rotate the front three at some point, so he can come in wide for either Mane or Salah, and in midfield we could still play Fabinho/Henderson Wijnaldum, Keita.

Yes and that's why I said that it's possibly causing "an issue". My guess was that Shaqiri would come on or for Salah or Mane or replace them when injured but it's hard to argue against him starting along with Mane and Salah.

I'm not sure that he fits into our midfield either as I think Milner, Henderson, Keita and Fabinho are better and stronger.

Shaqiri is a bit of a one-off and he works best when he's given a free roll to pick up loose balls around the box or to drift in from the wing like he did yesterday to score.

He'll either be starting or come on for the foreseeable future. He will roll up his sleeves and not give up.

[jepovic]

He's better than I though before he joined. I knew he was talented, but had the impression that he wasn't much a worker, the way Klopp demands. That impression seems way off. He's had a great start here, long may it continue.

In particular, he's a much better passer than I expected. I guess he didn't get that many opportunities for passing at Stoke, since he was playing further up there and since his teammates were shit.
Still wonder if he shouldn't be used more on the wing, to give Salah and Mane some rest.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

Not convinced. Felt at the time Shaqiri was the Plan B to Fekir. Now that Shaqiri has hit the ground running, there's more of a void for a winger like Barca's Dembele in our squad than Fekir.

I think Shaqiri will cover both slots in the upcoming period. Especially if Keita is fit, we'll g back to our previous shape imo.

[The Test]

Not convinced. Felt at the time Shaqiri was the Plan B to Fekir. Now that Shaqiri has hit the ground running, there's more of a void for a winger like Barca's Dembele in our squad than Fekir.

I'd say we may still be able to accommodate another attacking mid and winger. A few years ago when we had Riera and Kuyt as our wide forwards and Yossi as our Swiss army knife depth I'd have said that was massively overkill. But now, trying to compete with city's squad, I'd say overloading with attacking options is perfectly reasonable.

[Ravishing Rick Dude]

Shaq >> Mahrez
Shaq >> Sanchez

[Kashinoda]

This is doing my head in. Trent scored one against Hoffenheim and thinks he's David Beckham. Henderson hasn't taken a good free-kick in about five years. Van Dijk?! Get off it and leave the expert set-piece taker to it!

Expert? He's scored 3 in the Premiere League in his entire career, 7 in his lifetime.

Van Dijk has scored 4 in his lifetime and is just as capable judging by this.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/dS6t2ktdMQU" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/dS6t2ktdMQU</a>

[LallanaInPyjamas]

Expert? He's scored 3 in the Premiere League in his entire career, 7 in his lifetime.

Van Dijk has scored 4 in his lifetime and is just as capable judging by this.

Fair enough. I assumed most of his goals for Celtic were headers in all honesty.

I still think Shaqiri is a more natural striker of the ball than him and Trent though and should be the number one taker, especially in central or right-sided areas like yesterday.

[Bergersrightwingviews]

Not convinced. Felt at the time Shaqiri was the Plan B to Fekir. Now that Shaqiri has hit the ground running, there's more of a void for a winger like Barca's Dembele in our squad than Fekir.

[/b]

Oh go on then. You've twisted my arm. He would be an acceptable alternative.

I would like to see us raid the top teams for their fringe players and I do think we could do with another top-class option for the front three. We are very reliant on Salah, Mane and Firmino.

[LallanaInPyjamas]

[/b]

Oh go on then. You've twisted my arm. He would be an acceptable alternative.

I would like to see us raid the top teams for their fringe players and I do think we could do with another top-class option for the front three. We are very reliant on Salah, Mane and Firmino.

Welcome aboard    The Test is obviously right in that there's room for both, but I don't see that as likely, and certainly not in January. I'd rather the manager is tooled with more different options than more similar options. One of Firmino or Mané would have been benched by now if we had that.

[Gnurglan]

Yes and that's why I said that it's possibly causing "an issue". My guess was that Shaqiri would come on or for Salah or Mane or replace them when injured but it's hard to argue against him starting along with Mane and Salah.

I'm not sure that he fits into our midfield either as I think Milner, Henderson, Keita and Fabinho are better and stronger.

Shaqiri is a bit of a one-off and he works best when he's given a free roll to pick up loose balls around the box or to drift in from the wing like he did yesterday to score.

He'll either be starting or come on for the foreseeable future. He will roll up his sleeves and not give up.

Looks like the idea is to play Shaqiri at RM in a 4-2-3-1, with Salah up front.

[The Test]

Welcome aboard    The Test is obviously right in that there's room for both, but I don't see that as likely, and certainly not in January. I'd rather the manager is tooled with more different options than more similar options. One of Firmino or Mané would have been benched by now if we had that.

Another speedster would be great. But we sort of match up with city in that dept with Salah and Mane as our sane / sterling equivalent. Where we fall down massively is the 2 x Silva's / debruyne section, with Mahrez farting around as an option in both areas. You're right 2 attacking signings is highly unlikely in Jan. So I guess I'd like to see another hybrid brought in. A tricky lock picker who's also fast as fuck would be perfect and would probably only cost 150 to 200 mill. Get it done Ayre / Parry / Liverpool city gritty committee!


(I know the City comparisons are a bit annoying but its quite handy seeing how we match up)

[Cracking Left Foot]

As great as he is on the pitch, it's his attitude that's really impressed me. For some reason, I had him down as a bit of a moaner, but he's done things exactly the right way when you're on the bench - kept positive, not whinged to the press, and worked really hard when he gets his chances. Bit like Robbo did at the start of last season, and now he's one of the first names on the team sheet.

[RedForeverTT]

Yes and that's why I said that it's possibly causing "an issue". My guess was that Shaqiri would come on or for Salah or Mane or replace them when injured but it's hard to argue against him starting along with Mane and Salah.

I'm not sure that he fits into our midfield either as I think Milner, Henderson, Keita and Fabinho are better and stronger.

Shaqiri is a bit of a one-off and he works best when he's given a free roll to pick up loose balls around the box or to drift in from the wing like he did yesterday to score.

He'll either be starting or come on for the foreseeable future. He will roll up his sleeves and not give up.

Even when he was at Stoke, he could conjure something out of nothing. I remember him destroying Manchester United in one match. The problem was he couldn't do it on a regular basis and I wouldn't blame him. When you have got lesser players around it is hard to play to a high standard every time.

Now he is probably in the right place and in the right time. Bayern Munich came too early in his career and he wasn't ready for it. So now with all the experience of grinding out results as relegation team year after year and some  renewed confidence, things are finally working out for him.

So many relegated players never really did good at Liverpool over the years - Charlie Adam, Stewart Downing, Danny Ings. It is therefore sweet that he and Robbo is proving otherwise.

[The Test]

So many relegated players never really did good at Liverpool over the years - Charlie Adam, Stewart Downing, Danny Ings.

One of these is not like the other two

[stockdam]

Looks like the idea is to play Shaqiri at RM in a 4-2-3-1, with Salah up front.

Which I think stops Firmino playing in his best position..............I think shoe-horning Saqiri in has implications.

He is a very good player and I cannot see how he can be left out but that to me may impact how Salah and Firmino play. As long as we keep on winning then it doesn't matter.

[stockdam]

As great as he is on the pitch, it's his attitude that's really impressed me. For some reason, I had him down as a bit of a moaner, but he's done things exactly the right way when you're on the bench - kept positive, not whinged to the press, and worked really hard when he gets his chances. Bit like Robbo did at the start of last season, and now he's one of the first names on the team sheet.

His determination is really good and this must help to raise the bar within the team. I don't see him doing anything than his very best.

[hesbighesred]

This is doing my head in. Trent scored one against Hoffenheim and thinks he's David Beckham. Henderson hasn't taken a good free-kick in about five years. Van Dijk?! Get off it and leave the expert set-piece taker to it!

Van Dijk takes an excellent free-kick. No reason he can't take the odd right-footer. And I think Trent's free-kicks are of a high-level, too. But I agree that when Shaq is on the pitch and it's a set-piece that favours his foot, he should be the first choice by a mile.

[Dim Glas]

Even when he was at Stoke, he could conjure something out of nothing. I remember him destroying Manchester United in one match. The problem was he couldn't do it on a regular basis and I wouldn't blame him. When you have got lesser players around it is hard to play to a high standard every time.

Now he is probably in the right place and in the right time. Bayern Munich came too early in his career and he wasn't ready for it. So now with all the experience of grinding out results as relegation team year after year and some  renewed confidence, things are finally working out for him.

So many relegated players never really did good at Liverpool over the years - Charlie Adam, Stewart Downing, Danny Ings. It is therefore sweet that he and Robbo is proving otherwise.

Gini is another one!

Shaq actually was doing fine with Bayern Munich under Jupp Heynckes, he had a good first season despite being only 20/21 years old. And got better as the season went on, starting more and more games later in the season and producing goals and assists. It was when Guardiola arrived that things went south for him there, he had a lot of injuries that 1st season under him, then the next season it was clear he wasn't in his plans, and was sent on loan during the winter break. And Bayern didn't exactly make things easy for him regarding moving on as everyone knows! Strange time in his career for sure.

[hesbighesred]

His determination is really good and this must help to raise the bar within the team. I don't see him doing anything than his very best.

I totally agree with this. I've also been very pleasantly surprised by his finesse and creativity. Like I knew he could finish and had a rocket shot and could take set-pieces, but he sees passes that very, very few players are capable of seeing, let alone pulling them off with the delicacy he does. There was one for Robertson which was crossed for a goal in the CL - I've forgotten which one now. But most players would have played it just ahead of Robbo, encouraging him to attack the outside of the full-back and then have to put in a cross from deeper. Shaq saw a gap between FB and CB in what was a deep-line, and threaded it through the gap such that it took out the CB and FB completely, with Robertson then able to do a much more dangerous pull back type cross. The pass was basically so good that it almost forced that type of run and cross from Robbo, and it was a pass that never looked on in real time until he'd actually made it. And he plays that kind of pass consistently, it's lovely and so, so dangerous - particularly useful against those parked buses where space is at such a premium and where any opportunity to get in behind is a precious thing.

[RedForeverTT]

Gini is another one!

Shaq actually was doing fine with Bayern Munich under Jupp Heynckes, he had a good first season despite being only 20/21 years old. And got better as the season went on, starting more and more games later in the season and producing goals and assists. It was when Guardiola arrived that things went south for him there, he had a lot of injuries that 1st season under him, then the next season it was clear he wasn't in his plans, and was sent on loan during the winter break. And Bayern didn't exactly make things easy for him regarding moving on as everyone knows! Strange time in his career for sure.

I forgot that it was Guardiola that sent him away.

At the beginning I wasn't sure if Shaq was a creative midfielder or more like a someone you could give the ball to for him to put it away. But it looks like he could do both now.

Out of all the creative midfielders that we had in Anfield in recent years, I would say that he is above the level of Benayoun and Garcia.

[jepovic]

Gini is another one!

Shaq actually was doing fine with Bayern Munich under Jupp Heynckes, he had a good first season despite being only 20/21 years old. And got better as the season went on, starting more and more games later in the season and producing goals and assists. It was when Guardiola arrived that things went south for him there, he had a lot of injuries that 1st season under him, then the next season it was clear he wasn't in his plans, and was sent on loan during the winter break. And Bayern didn't exactly make things easy for him regarding moving on as everyone knows! Strange time in his career for sure.

Bayern had Ribery and Robben in their prime on the wings. That is some serious competition.

[Dim Glas]

Bayern had Ribery and Robben in their prime on the wings. That is some serious competition.

indeed, and Thomas Müller too in fantastic form and he often playing as a wide forward, that's a tough team to get into. But he actually did contribute really well under Heynckes, he was a constant in his match day squads, as a young player managing to play as much as he did in his first season in that squad is actually pretty impressive. But it seems to get forgotten, as his time at Bayern is always considered to have bad due to how it ended under Guardiola. 

[fowlermagic]

It will be interesting to see how he fits into our long term plans when all are fit as I was watching Spackman yesterday go on about Ox been a better fit for the side than Shaqiri but Ox will probably not be match fit until next season so dont know why he even mentioned Ox. Personally I think Shaqiri deserves a run in the team now as he has hit the ground running and hopefully will blossom as the season goes on. If we could compensate for the loss of goals / assists we had via Coutinho with one or two other attacking midfielders then I can see it aiding our tilt at the title this season. Currently City must have 3 or 4 attacking midfielders that have better numbers than our boys from open play and its the one area they do have a clear advantage on us right now. Bridge that gap with the likes of Shaqiri, Keita and Lallana then I see us matching them as the season goes on. 

[christofu]

Which I think stops Firmino playing in his best position..............I think shoe-horning Saqiri in has implications.

He is a very good player and I cannot see how he can be left out but that to me may impact how Salah and Firmino play. As long as we keep on winning then it doesn't matter.

agreed. I think the 4-2-3-1 allows us to 'unpark' the bus while being solid at the back. In part allowing a lock-picker like Shaqiri freedom to do damage. Those games have been our achilles heel over the last few years so I am more than happy to win them at less than our swashbuckling best.

Hopefully we play 4-3-3 against the bigger sides and interested as to where he fits in here - I think an Ox (currently injured of course) or Keita will be preferred as an 8, leaving Shaqiri to rotate with the front 3 - unless he can show Klopp he has the graft and workrate for a central midfield position

in any case glad to have him with us as he gives us another dimension

[Another Red]

I really like what I've seen from him so far. I'm guessing we went for Shaqiri instead of Fekir(?) and in terms of value I think it was a smart decision by the club. His attitude and professionalism seem pretty good and there's no doubt about his talent. He's obviously made some bad career moves (not talking about Stoke) but he's now at a club that will really push him to produce his best.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

I really like what I've seen from him so far. I'm guessing we went for Shaqiri instead of Fekir(?) and in terms of value I think it was a smart decision by the club. His attitude and professionalism seem pretty good and there's no doubt about his talent. He's obviously made some bad career moves (not talking about Stoke) but he's now at a club that will really push him to produce his best.

Not the case, we were interested in Shaqiri at the same time we were negotiating for Fekir.