Do you ever play the game where you plot out your dream football club career chronology?
Start at your hometown club, get a big move, go on a tour of massive clubs in multiple countries, maybe a little spell in MLS for the lifestyle, then back to the original club for a big victory lap.
It's a well-known trajectory, now.
Former Liverpool star Xherdan Shaqiri racks up incredible goals and assist tally in Swiss Super League
Xherdan Shaqiri has pretty much done exactly that, if a stint at Stoke City can ever be said to be a 'dream career'. But the Swiss international is not just there to help make up numbers in the team photo since returning to Basel last year.
Shaqiri left Basel for Bayern Munich in 2012, going on to represent Inter, Stoke, Liverpool, Lyon and Chicago Fire before coming back to Switzerland.
His exploits this season are remarkable. The goalscoring playmaker has smashed in 18 goals and claimed 20 assists in the Swiss Super League, giving him a combined 38 goal contributions in just 32 appearances.
hat has included two hat-tricks and three hat-tricks of assists to help Basel to the top of the table, all on top of helping them book a place in the Swiss Cup final, where they will face third-tier Biel-Bienne.
Basel still have two games to play, against Young Boys and Luzern, but are already guaranteed the title after opening up an 11-point gap over second-placed Servette.
That marks Shaqiri's fourth league title with Basel, to go along with his three with Bayern and one with Liverpool. He has lifted the Champions League trophy twice, with Bayern in 2013 and Liverpool in 2020.
It also means Shaqiri could end up facing one or even several of his former clubs in the Champions League next season, with Basel now guaranteed a place in the final qualifying round.
Shaqiri is under contract at Basel until summer 2027 but no longer features for the Swiss national team after announcing his retirement from international football following Euro 2024.
With 125 appearances, he is the third most-capped Swiss international of all time, behind the still-active Granit Xhaka and Ricardo Rodriguez.
