Liverpool FC will be Champions League match at red star Belgrade without Xherdan Shaqiri the best. The club feared the hostility of the Belgrade Fans. In this decision, in Liverpool, there is considerable criticism.
The Swiss Xherdan Shaqiri, a kosovo-Albanian parents, had provoked in the football world Cup, the Serbian Fans. Serbia does not recognize the independence of the former Serbian province of Kosovo.
“We have heard speculation and talk about it and read how Shaq would be received,” explained Klopp, the decision. “We have no idea what would happen, but we want to go there and to focus 100 percent on football and not other things to worry about, that’s all.”
Klopp: “No political message”
During the world Cup, the former Bayern had shown professional Shaqiri with a goal celebration gesture of the double-headed eagle, symbolizes the Albanian flag. Serbia does not recognize the Albanian populated Kosovo, formerly a province of Serbia.
Klopp has stressed that Liverpool didn’t want to send any political message. It wants to “avoid distractions” in competition, “is for football and only football is important”.
A significant criticism of Liverpool’s decision
Criticism of the decision comes not only from Switzerland: “Concern on this matter, however, is that you are kinking at Liverpool in front of the Serbian nationalists, of which today many in the stadium seats,” wrote the “Aargauer Zeitung”: “Shaqiri is not to Belgrade, fly, is neither brave, smart, nor clever.” Klopp wipes the way: “It could be a story, and we wanted to no story, next to the football – that’s why we have decided so.”
Also, Muharrem Sahiti, assistant coach of the Kosovo national team coach, Bernard Challandes said in the air of the Super sports Kosovo: “Shaqiri could not be left to political reasons at home. I had expected that he wins because of his character, the game in Belgrade (for Liverpool).”
The mayor of Prishtina, Shpend Ahmeti, commented on Twitter the official decision of the Liverpool FC Coach: “If a player is not taken, because of the possible reception’ there, then, is the message that an enemy was welcome in order. No Klopp, is not in order, and a city and a country that Shaqiri cannot accept this because he is Albanian, is not wonderful.”
jst/ck (dpa)