New Liverpool signing Xherdan Shaqiri announced himself to Reds fans in spectacular fashion recently when he scored a sensational overhead kick on his debut against his sides’ bitter rivals Manchester United in a 4-1 pre-season friendly victory.
However, while nobody doubts that the 26-year-old has match winning ability, his work rate has often been questioned during his time in the Premier League – something that his former Stoke City team-mate Charlie Adam has confirmed was a real issue during his time at the Potters.
“He’s a big player, at times he did well for us,” Adam told the BBC.
“But in critical situations, I felt tracking back and what we needed for the team in a relegation battle just wasn’t there.
“He has got it in him, but he probably knew we were going to get relegated, he was going to the World Cup and had this big move – this move was probably done three, four months ago.
“He is a match-winner, but at times it was difficult to play in the same team. The manager would let him get away with certain things.”
Former Liverpool midfielder Adam has also questioned how well Shaqiri will react to being on the bench at Anfield, with Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah likely to Jurgen Klopp’s first choice picks in the wide positions.
“He might get frustrated at not playing as much as he wants – it’s how long he waits and what (manager Jurgen) Klopp does with him,” Adam added.
