da betway： Xherdan Shaqiri has proven his worth to Liverpool since signing from Stoke City following their relegation to the Championship during the 2017/18 season.
da blaze casino： Purchased for a relatively low fee of £13m, the Switzerland international did well last term during the time he was given on the field.
In 30 matches in all competitions, he scored six goals and made five assists, and provided some important moments for Jurgen Klopp’s men – against Manchester United, he bagged a brace to give his side a 3-1 victory, whilst he also provided an assist in the now-mythical Champions League semi-final second leg 4-0 victory over Barcelona.
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However, recent rumours have insinuated that the Red would be willing to let him go if they received a fee of £25m. His departure would leave the Anfield outfit light of an attacking midfield option, meaning that a new recruit would be required.
And, with that in mind, it’s no surprise Liverpool are reportedly scouting Werder Bremen’s Milot Rashica, according to Bild, who has a €38m (£32m) release clause.
Die Werderaner have struggled this campaign and are languishing near the bottom of the table as a result. The Kosovo international, though, has been one of the very few bright sparks for manager Florian Kohfeldt. He has 10 goals and four assists in all competitions, which is the most amongst his teammates.
Of course, there is little point in comparing the 23-year-old with Shaqiri during his time on Merseyside – the latter has spent most of this season on the sidelines or the bench.
For a start, and even though he featured more regularly in the previous campaign, the European champions are not on the same level as Bremen. It makes far more sense to compare to when the former Internazionale man found himself in a similar situation during his time at the Bet365 Stadium.
At Stoke, Shaqiri was primarily a creative player. In 36 starts for the Potters during the 2017/18 campaign, he averaged 2.1 key passes per match, as well as a passing accuracy of 79.5% – far better than Rashica’s 1.6 and 74.5% so far this term. That translated into more assists, as well – the older of the two managed seven, compared to his rival’s three so far this season.
Rashica, though, is a far more direct player, as the stats suggest. This term, he has averaged 3.1 shots per game and 2.2 dribbles, which has led to be him being dispossessed 2.4 times per match – although he has won 1.8 free-kicks per game as well. In all of these departments, Shaqiri recorded inferior numbers during his final campaign with the now Championship club.
In 17 less matches, the Bremen man already has just one goal less than the stocky forward’s eight.
Clearly, Rashica offers something different than Liverpool’s current number 23. Shaqiri is better from a passing point of view, whilst the Reds target is far more of a risk-taker. And it seems that would make him a more natural fit for Klopp’s team – other than goals and assists, his numbers are not too dissimilar to Mohamed Salah.
Taking the Kosovan to Liverpool would indicate a change in direction for Klopp and, given his age, he has a far bigger future in the game compared to Shaqiri. It remains to be seen whether the Reds make a concrete move, but, were he to sign, Rashica could very well be a breath of fresh air.