Shaqiri’s comments suggest Liverpool kept him in the dark over transfer plan

Liverpool have accepted a bid in the region of £9.5million for Xherdan Shaqiri, with the Swiss international set to complete a medical having already agreed personal terms

Xherdan Shaqiri is closing in on his Liverpool exit after the Reds accepted a £9.5million bid from Lyon on Sunday night.

The 29-year-old enjoyed an impressive Euro 2020 with Switzerland, continuing his run of scoring in each of the last four major tournaments.

But opportunities on Merseyside looked scarce under Jurgen Klopp, having played just 551 minutes in the Premier League last term.

Shaqiri is one of several fringe stars at Anfield that could be moved on before the window closes as Liverpool look to bring in funds for any potential late incomings.

The ECHO report that an initial bid of around £4m was initially rejected, before the Ligue 1 outfit returned with an offer that was deemed acceptable.

Liverpool were keen to recoup most of the £13m they put down when buying the Swiss international from Stoke City in 2018.

After reaching an agreement with Lyon, Shaqiri will now conduct a medical, having already agreed personal terms.

According to the Athletic, Liverpool bosses have been planning the player’s exit for more than 12 months and sanctioned Harvey Elliott’s loan to Blackburn to get him ready to step into the void.

Elliott fulfilled his end of the bargain and already looks a Premier League star in-waiting after his showing in the win over Burnley on Saturday.

However, if plans have been afoot for more than a year, then Shaqiri’s recent comments suggest he wasn’t privy to such discussions.

Speaking after joining up with his Liverpool teammates for pre-season, the versatile forward spoke clearly about not only his own ambitions for the upcoming season, but the aims of the team as a whole.

“I’m looking forward to the new season and hopefully we’re going to achieve what we want to achieve with this club,” he said at the start of August.

“Our goal is always to win, to play for titles and to give 100 per cent on the pitch.

“Then we will see what happens. But, of course, we’re going to try everything to win.”

As for the return of spectators, he added: “We know how Anfield is when we have a game and how they push us through the game and how many times we won the games or we came back with the fans – something special. Of course, it’s going to give us an extra boost.”

Shaqiri also spoke about how, as a team, Liverpool could wrestle back the title, hinting he was expecting at least one more season with the Premier League giants.

“We have [a] top-quality group and very good lads – this is also very important to have good characters,” he explained.

“To achieve as a club, we need to stick together as a team. If we do that and if we give everything we have with our talent on the pitch and fight together with the team then we can achieve a lot of things this season.”

Along with Shaqiri; Divock Origi, Nat Phillips, Loris Karius and Sheyi Ojo could all be moved on by the August 31 deadline.