KEY POINTS

  • Shaqiri has no plans of leaving Anfield
  • Swiss struggling with injuries but vows to manage health next season
  • Shaqiri faces tall odds cracking the first team of Jurgen Klopp

With a stacked lineup, breaking the first-team would be a tough one to achieve for players like Xherdan Shaqiri. It has been a frustrating season for him having to earn his keep but such has not forced him into thinking about moving out of Anfield. The 28-year-old reveals he has no plans to quit this summer despite making only 11 appearances across all competitions.

Adding to the woes of the Swiss national was having to deal with injuries last season. It was one of the struggles he had to endure, a reason for his limited time on the field. Looking ahead, he hopes to make sure he stays fit so that he can earn his minutes once more with The Reds.

"Always if you are injured or if you are not playing, you're frustrated,” Shaqiri said via the club’s website. “But I'm looking forward to this season and trying to help the team all the time, so I have the chance to play like the first season."

Attaining that will not be easy. Ahead of Shaqiri are players with established names. That includes Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, the first-choice reliables of manager Jurgen Klopp. For now, it appears he will just make the most out of the chances given to him. For Shaqiri, seeing the club win games and titles is the most important thing for now.

"As a team, I just want us to achieve a lot of things. I think we have a lot of good players in our team, everyone can play and we try to make it very difficult for the coach as always," he said. "I'm trying to give my best too and to help the team to win games, titles – that's the most important thing for me.”

That all starts now for Shaqiri as he and the rest of the Reds return for pre-season training. It was a short break for the club due to the changes in schedule forced by the COVID-19 pandemic, Goal reported.

Xherdan Shaqiri
Bayern Munich and Switzerland winger Xherdan Shaqiri could be on his way to Liverpool, even after he insisted on remaining in Germany. Reuters

"We are really excited and we always want to win every game but we know it's going to also be difficult. The other teams also want to win, so I think it's going to be an exciting season," Shaqiri ended.

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