Liverpool had a quiet transfer deadline day in terms of arrivals, but the Reds were looking to offload quite a few players.
The defending Premier League champions have a pretty big squad, and since Jurgen Klopp rarely makes changes to his team, many miss out on regular first-team opportunities.
Players like Marko Grujic, Harry Wilson, Divock Origi and Xherdan Shaqiri are not Klopp’s first-choice starters, and they were all linked with a move away from the club as a result.
Many felt that Shaqiri was the likeliest to leave the club before last night’s deadline. The former Bayern Munich man was heavily linked with a switch to Lazio over the last few weeks, and BBC Sport even claimed that the Italians or Sevilla could make a late move.
Sadly for Shaqiri, that didn’t happen. The Swiss international spoke to Thuner Tagblatt about staying at Liverpool this season, and he claimed that it was his decision not to move.
He said: “The media write a lot, but in the end, I’m with Liverpool. I have a long-term contract and I really feel good. I have decided to stay with Liverpool. In football, there is always speculation. I think the national team comes at a good time to be able to play again and then attack again when I go back to Liverpool.”
That rules out a move to another English club before the domestic window ends in 10 days. Shaqiri has featured for just 75 minutes this season, and he already has a goal to show for it.
The Swiss attacker will have to depend on domestic cup games for regular game time but, sadly for him, Liverpool bowed out of the Carabao Cup after a penalty shootout loss to Arsenal last week.
It will be interesting too how much football Shaqiri will play in the next few months. History shows that he will not feature in every game, which might open up the opportunity for Lazio or Sevilla to make a move for him in the winter transfer window.
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