KLOPP CAN SEE THE QUALITY OF FORMER POTTERS STAR SHAQIRI
ISUSPECT Stoke fans will have had mixed feelings about Xherdan Shaqiri’s match-winning contribution to Liverpool’s win over Manchester United.
There will be plenty pleased for him, but it’s also a reminder that he’s no longer at Stoke and Stoke are no longer in the Premier League.
I fancy he’s done a lot better so far at Liverpool than anyone thought he would, certainly me, and played more than anyone anticipated.
But obviously his new manager has seen enough of him in training to think his free-kicks, his left foot, whatever it be, can have a part to play.
I certainly agree with those who believe he’s a better player in a team doing well than in a team struggling.
Another reason for his favourable impact, perhaps, is that anyone with any kind of burst of speed can make their presence felt in today’s game.
Players who had genuine pace, but maybe lacked the final ball, were two a penny at one time, but not any more it seems.
In fact, off the top of my head, the only one I can think of is Andros Townsend down at Crystal Palace.
The outcome of Sunday’s game at Anfield shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone because it kicked off with a 16-point gap between the two teams and that gap evidently showed.
I’m not so sure that gap is because one team is brilliant, just that the other has coughed and spluttered its way through the season so far.
To be so far out of title contention by mid December is worrying for United, while even a place in the top four is looking a long way off now.
As for the title, it’s definitely a two-horse race between Liverpool and City.
It will nag away at Stoke all week, leading twice in the second half and only getting a point in the end at Aston Villa. But that is the Championship, the ups and downs and the inconsistencies. So teams will be forever winning or drawing games they don’t really deserve to and vice versa.
The great thing for Stoke is that they are still within touching distance of the top six - despite dropping all those points from all those draws. I really do think it could come down to the last half-dozen games of the season.
I expect them to be within touching distance by then, if not closer, and it’s only in those last six games where they won’t be able to afford any serious hiccups and will have to win games like Saturday’s.
That’s always assuming they can take care of the likes of Millwall at home this coming Saturday, of course, and I’d be surprised if they can’t.
Millwall are heading in the wrong direction and now find themselves in the bottom three after their latest defeat.
It smacks of Stoke’s last home game against bottom club Ipswich and however well they play, Stoke must take all three points off Millwall.
I’m assuming Ryan Shawcross will be in the heart of that Stoke defence, as he has been more often than not over the past 11 years.
To become 10th on the club’s all-time list for appearances at the weekend is a hell of an achievement in any age, but particularly nowadays when players are swapping clubs every five minutes.
He was written off again by many after losing his place earlier in the season and maybe those critics would have been right with another player who has money in the bank and no longer has the appetite.
But after 11 years at the same club, Ryan clearly has a lot of pride at stake and that must be fuelling his desire to get back in the team and prove himself worthy of staying there. Time waits for no man and his time will eventually come, but not for a while perhaps.
It’s a horrible feeling as a player, when that clock is ticking, and when it does come there is simply nothing you can do, as I remember from the latter days of my time at Old Trafford.
I can’t argue with Geraint Thomas winning the BBC Sports Personality Of The Year trophy for the wonderful achievement of winning the Tour de France.
I was just a bit surprised that Harry Kane, fine player though he is, was being so widely touted beforehand when England hadn’t actually won the World Cup.
Finally, the Champions League draw.
Everyone will be writing United off, but if they can get a lead in the first leg they still have a chance against PSG.
Liverpool probably start favourites given their form and Bayern Munich’s, while Tottenham have a decent shout against Borussia Dortmund.
Man City couldn’t have asked for a much better draw and should get past Schalke. Almost unnoticed amid the joy of twice leading and the frustration of then twice conceding, both emerged with gold stars compared to some of the brickbats previously suffered. Mcclean played a part in both goals, forced an early save, worked his socks off and generally played his part in many of Stoke’s better moments. And it’s hard to disagree with anyone proclaiming Saturday’s 2-2 draw as his most effective offering yet for Stoke City. As for Afobe,
he stepped off the bench and had been on the pitch for about four minutes by the time his first meaningful touch was his 78th-minute penalty. Given his lack of goals and games, the state of the match and the fact he missed from the spot a few miles down the road at West Brom in August, it was some moment to not only score, but do so with a low effort drilled into the bottom right-hand corner that would have beaten any goalkeeper put in front of him. Afobe has, if he’s cared to look, seen many of his attributes as a footballer questioned over the past few months, by this column too, and so it’s only fair to pay tribute when earned. Both he and Mcclean have a long, long way to go to earn their stripes, let alone win over the affections of a demanding crowd, but events like Saturday’s in Birmingham suggest they have the heart and the temperament to at least try.