Lucas Leiva has admitted he almost left Liverpool during the transfer window but is delighted to be staying on Merseyside and remaining with the Reds. 

The Brazilian opened up about recent events to the club’s official website and said he hopes to be an important player for manager Brendan Rodgers this season:

It’s been very intense [the window], to be honest. 

I think the last couple of years, every transfer window my name is [linked with a move]. 

Of course there are times when you think you might have to move on and I was very close to moving but one thing I will always have is commitment to this club.

I’ve been here so long and I always said if I had the choice to be here and be happy, I would always choose Liverpool. 

When your future is in doubt, you might have to think of another solution, but I’m happy that it didn’t happen and I’m here to fight for the club as I have been doing for eight years.

The Liverpool Echo (h/t David Wright of the Express) reported the player was on the verge of joining Besiktas in August, with the Turkish club’s Erdal Torunogullari quoted as saying by Lig TV: “Lucas is a player on our shortlist, talks are ongoing.”

However, the deal didn’t materialise—leaving the midfielder stuck in the reserves at Anfield.

But the injury to Jordan Henderson has opened the door for Lucas, giving him a chance to impress Rodgers once again in the first team. 

Despite his falling stock, the 28-year-old featured regularly for Liverpool last season; he appeared 20 times in the Premier League, starting 16 games, per WhoScored.com.

But Henderson’s rise to prominence and the arrival of James Milner have left his long-term future in question. 

Leiva remains popular among Liverpool fans, with blogger Jack Sear complimenting the midfielder:

The Liverpool Echo’s Joe Rimmer also congratulated the player for remaining with the Reds, applauding him for his recent comments:

Leiva will continue to be a faithful servant as long as Rodgers wants him, but his first-team chances will remain limited when the Liverpool midfield is fit. 

 

Stephane Henchoz Slams Shaqiri

Former Rodgers target Xherdan Shaqiri has been attacked by former Liverpool and Switzerland defender Stephane Henchoz for choosing Stoke City ahead of host of bigger clubs.

David Wright of the Express reports the ex-Red believes the highly regarded Shaqiri signed a five-year deal with the Potters purely for financial gain and said he finds the talented player’s decision “incomprehensible”:

Why else would Xherdan Shaqiri sign a five-year contract with Stoke? 

He is certainly not there because Stoke have big ambitions to reach the Champions League, which will never be the case. It is only because of the money at Stoke. 

I find it incomprehensible. He’s at Stoke because he can get money there he can get nowhere else. That’s all.

The Swiss international nearly joined Liverpool in the January transfer window in a £12 million deal, per Blick (h/t Charles Perrin of the Express), but said he opted to sign for Inter Milan after a “gut feeling.” The player said he wanted to join Liverpool, but his then-current club Bayern Munich could not agree a deal, leading him to favour a doomed switch to Serie A.

Shaqiri is destined to do well in England, and the drop to a side that doesn’t traditionally chase trophies could help his game.

At Bayern, he always seemed out of his depth in competitive matches, and he might have struggled with the spotlight at Anfield too. 

However, a good season for Stoke will see his value rocket once again; at 23, he still has so much to offer, and his development in the top leagues may only be about to bear fruit in the coming months. 

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