Ex-Liverpool flop Charlie Adam blames Xherdan Shaqiri for Stoke's relegation
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New Liverpool signing Xherdan Shaqiri has been accused of going missing when Stoke City needed him most at the end of last season.
The 26-year-old arrived at Anfield at the weekend in a £13 million deal from a relegated Stoke side where he was heavily criticised for their doomed campaign.
Despite the Potters' struggles last season, though, Shaqiri contributed eight goals and seven assists from his 36 outings in the top flight.
However, Stoke midfielder Charlie Adam - the one-time Red who spent three years playing alongside Shaqiri at the bet365 Stadium - has accused the Swiss winger of failing to help in relegation battle.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Adam, who missed a crucial penalty against Leicester City and was sent off against Everton last season, explained that Shaqiri should have been one of the players to step up and take Stoke out of their relegation mess.
On the same platform, former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan went even further with his criticism of the Switzerland international.
The 26-year-old arrived at Anfield at the weekend in a £13 million deal from a relegated Stoke side where he was heavily criticised for their doomed campaign.
Despite the Potters' struggles last season, though, Shaqiri contributed eight goals and seven assists from his 36 outings in the top flight.
However, Stoke midfielder Charlie Adam - the one-time Red who spent three years playing alongside Shaqiri at the bet365 Stadium - has accused the Swiss winger of failing to help in relegation battle.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Adam, who missed a crucial penalty against Leicester City and was sent off against Everton last season, explained that Shaqiri should have been one of the players to step up and take Stoke out of their relegation mess.
Was he one of them? Oh, definitely.
When the chips are down you look at your big players, you want your big players to bring magic in one moment in the season, and at times we felt like the so-called big players in the squad never turned up for us and never performed.
Yeah, everybody else could help, but for all the plaudits to so-called bigger players we getting from certain members of the management staff last season - they weren't producing.
But, listen, he's gone now. We move on and we look to the future. The future for us at the moment is in the Championship.
On the same platform, former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan went even further with his criticism of the Switzerland international.
There's no doubt that quality wise, Shaqiri has a quality.
I thought he was a slob last year for Stoke and Charlie Adam couldn't, and possibly didn't want, to say it to that extent.
But I felt he embodied the reasons why Stoke probably got relegated because he did it when he felt like it and not when he didn't.
It's a curious, curious signing. Maybe because (Alex) Oxlade-Chamberlain is out. I don't see that as a like-for-like but maybe it is.
