Liverpool Steal March On Tottenham By Opening Talks With Agent Ahead Of £13m Move

The summer transfer window is now open and managers are working hard on their transfer targets so we’ll bring you all the latest gossip from around the globe. Today, Liverpool open talks to sign Xherdan Shaqiri….

Liverpool have stolen a march on Tottenham after opening talks with the agent of Xherdan Shaqiri ahead of a £13.5m swoop for the Stoke attacker, according to the Mirror.

Shaqiri made his name at FC Basel after coming through their youth ranks before earning a move to Bayern Munich six years ago and he won two Bundesliga titles and the Champions League during his time in Germany. A disastrous 6-month spell at Inter Milan followed before the Swiss international joined Stoke in 2015 and he’s rediscovered some of his best form during his three years at the Bet365 Stadium.

The attacker provided 8 goals and 7 assists last season but his efforts weren’t enough to save Stoke from relegation to the Championship and understandably Shaqiri is a target for Premier League clubs this summer with the Mirror claiming that Tottenham are among those to have expressed their interest.

Mauricio Pochettino has been promised ample funds to strengthen his squad with this summer after guiding Tottenham to another top four finish and Shaqiri would give him another top quality option in the final third as the north Londoners look to become genuine title challengers next season.

However, the 26-year-old emerged as a Liverpool target last week and it looks like the Reds have now stolen a march on Spurs as the Mirror are citing a report from the Stoke Sentinel that claims Jurgen Klopp’s men opened talks with Shaqiri’s agent last Friday.

The attacker refused to be drawn on transfer speculation after insisting his agent will take care of his future while he concentrates on representing Switzerland at the upcoming World Cup.

Speaking after Switzerland’s 2-0 friendly win over Japan at the weekend, Shaqiri is quoted by the Mirror as saying:

“I can’t tell you anything. My agents take care of my future. I’m focusing on the national team right now.”

Although the player did confirm last week that he is looking to leave Stoke this summer. Shaqiri is quoted by the Mirror as saying:

“It is no secret that I will leave the club. Everyone wants to compete with the best, that was one reason why I chose the Premier League, and that’s why I want to take the next step now.

“I would love to stay in England. I think the league is perfect for me. It’s the best league with the best players, but I do not want to exclude anything.”

Liverpool are in the market for attacking reinforcements as Klopp needs more depth behind the likes of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane next season if the Merseysiders are to compete on all fronts.

They’ve also been strongly linked with Nabil Fekir in recent weeks but the Mirror claim that any potential deal for Shaqiri isn’t linked with their interest in the Lyon attacker so Klopp is seemingly on the look out for two attackers.

READ MORE –> Liverpool transfer news | Spurs transfer news

Shaqiri would be a solid addition to the squad and the newspaper says he has a release clause worth just £13.5m following Stoke’s relegation so he’d be an absolute bargain in today’s market.