A career progression that goes from Bayern Munich to Internazionale and then Stoke City tells its own story, but just in case Xherdan Shaqiri did not realise he was being brought back to earth with a bang, his unveiling at the Britannia Stadium was jointly held with an oatcake. The Potters make two signings at once, ran the blurb. One is a Swiss international costing a club record £12m, the other a Staffordshire delicacy now available for the first time on matchdays. Inevitably Shaqiri was asked if he had ever tried an oatcake and he replied in the negative, though he said he would be willing to try.
There were a few other negatives surrounding what the player described as a dream move to England, notably Stefan Effenberg’s assertion that he had only come along for the money and would have been better advised to take up an offer from Schalke and return to the Bundesliga.
Speaking good English, as well as fluent German, Shaqiri gave that notion short shrift. “I am really happy to be here, I talked it over a lot with my family and had many conversations with Mark Hughes,” the former Basel striker said. “This is the club for me. I don’t need to comment on what Effenberg said. He has no job at the moment so he is free to talk all he likes.”
Hughes too said he was not about to give credence to the opinions of an ex-Bayern player relocated to Florida, and laughed at the idea that Stoke were better payers than anyone else. “Of course financial considerations come into a deal, they always do, but we are hardly blowing our rivals out of the water with our financial might,” the Stoke manager said. “We can pay the going rate when we need to, but this transfer is not about money, it’s about playing. Xherdan has been with two big European clubs but he hasn’t played as many games as he would have liked. That’s what we can promise him, and for a young player that is what is important.”
Born in the old Yugoslavia to Kosovan parents, Shaqiri became a naturalised Swiss while playing for Basel and has since won 46 caps for the country and appeared in two World Cups. Despite scoring a hat-trick in the last one, against Honduras, and gaining initial prominence through helping Basel knock out Manchester United in 2011, his career has never quite taken off as expected. At Bayern he found it hard to dislodge Franck Ribéry and Arjen Robben from the first team, and though he made more than 50 appearances, many were as substitute and he did not play in the 2013 Champions League final that completed the treble for Jupp Heynckes’ side.
Liverpool were interested a year ago, as in fact were Stoke, though he chose to move to Internazionale instead, and became marginalised when Roberto Mancini took over as manager. When Hughes and Stoke resurrected their interest, it appeared Shaqiri was waiting for a better offer when he let an initial deadline pass, but either he changed his mind or nothing came along, possibly both.
Presenting a united front at the club unveiling, manager and player were both able to say it was the move they both wanted. “For me this is the perfect club,” Shaqiri said. “I have always wanted to play in the Premier League because I am a fast, strong player and I think it will suit me. English football is very offensive, all about fast attacks, and I like that. I knew I had to change clubs because Inter was not working out, and though I had other possibilities Mark Hughes was the most important factor for me. We spoke a lot, I could see many good players were already at the club, and I am looking forward to playing. I want to do my talking on the pitch, not into a microphone, and I can’t wait to start. I am still young, I want to play and I want to learn.”
Hughes said Shaqiri has a chance of playing some part in the weekend game at Tottenham Hotspur, most likely introduced from the bench as he is still short of match fitness. “I’m delighted to be able to bring in such a top quality player,” the manager said. “It might be a big amount of money for Stoke, but I believe it will prove to be good value. The only way you can progress is to add to the quality in your squad, and I think Xherdan can have a huge impact. He has the ability to change games, and that can win you matches.”
Hughes denied Stoke were a hard sell for transfer targets, though admitted most leading players wanted to move to Champions League clubs. “That’s only natural, but the downside with the very biggest clubs is that game time might be limited,” he said. “That’s what we can offer. If we keep progressing we might be able to offer European football at some stage, but what we say to players at the moment is that they will enjoy coming here and getting games. Our facilities are as good as most others, once we have players through the door here we can usually sell the club to them. Xherdan was an ambitious target for us, but we made the approach in the right way and never closed the door on the deal. We kept in contact and ultimately that paid off. We were the right club at the right time.”
All that remains now is for the player to resurrect his career in the Potteries, though Hughes does not believe he will have any difficulty. “He is made to measure for the Premier League,” he said. “He has power, pace and ability.” He will play on the right wing too. Just like Stanley Matthews. Had the Alpine Messi (not the greatest nickname, but preferable to the Magic Dwarf) heard of the Wizard of the Dribble? “Not yet, but I’ve done some homework. I know this is the second oldest club in the world. I guess I’ll get hold of some tapes of old players to watch.” Possibly while nibbling an oatcake.
