Xherdan Shaqiri says he decided to stay at Liverpool during the transfer window, adding that he feels good at Anfield despite a lack of playing time.
The Swiss international tested positive for coronavirus shortly after joining up with his national team on Monday, becoming the third member of the Liverpool squad to do so in the past week following positive tests recorded by Thiago Alcantara and Sadio Mane.
The pair missed the 7-2 hammering by Aston Villa on Sunday as they went into self-isolation, but Shaqiri couldn't earn a place on the bench even in their absences.
The former Stoke City star has only played once so far this season, scoring in the 7-2 win over Lincoln City in the Carabao Cup.
Jurgen Klopp withdrew him from selection for the clash with Arsenal in the following round, with many expecting that to lead to a transfer before Monday's deadline.
But instead he stayed, and in an interview broadcast by the Swiss FA before his coronavirus diagnosis, he says he was happy to stick around at Anfield and fight for his place.
“The media write a lot, but in the end I’m with Liverpool,” said Shaqiri in a video interview as he returned to the national team after 16 months away, only to then have to leave.
“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.”
Shaqiri picked up a Premier League winners' medal last season after featuring just seven times in the league, and only twice in 2020.
His medal can now sit alongside the three Bundesliga titles he picked up with Bayern Munich between 2013 and 2015, when he made 52 league appearances across three years.
However, his bit-part role in Liverpool's triumph has been slammed in Switzerland, with former FC Sion boss and local TV pundit Arno Rossini hitting the headlines with a withering attack on Shaqiri in July.
“Xherdan is not a champion,” Rossini told Tio.
“We certainly cannot say that he left his mark with the teams with which he won.
“Not with the big guys at least.
“He was the protagonist in Basel, certainly not at Bayern or Liverpool.
“Let’s say that over the years he has often followed the games of his teams as a spectator, sitting in the best places. And millions have also been paid for it."
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