Liverpool Transfer News: Xherdan Shaqiri Rejection, Fresh Miralem Pjanic Rumours

It seems as though Premier League clubs went all out to land Xherdan Shaqiri in the January window, with Bayern Munich revealing they rejected a host of substantial bids from English sides for the reported Liverpool target.

The Swiss sensational joined Internazionale on loan in the January window from the German giants and as noted by Stefan Coerts of Goal.com, the Nerazzuri are obliged to sign the 23-year-old on a permanent deal in the summer.

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But as noted in the aforementioned piece, Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge told La Gazzetta dello Sport there were bigger offers from Premier League clubs for the player:

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We would have earned more had we sold him to England so you could say we gave Inter a discount. Inter have hit the jackpot with the capture of Shaqiri. He is still young and has a lot of quality. He is a player who can make the difference.

He will only become more consistent once he has fully adapted. He needs to feel comfortable and at home to be at his best. There were a lot of Premier League clubs after him as well, but I advised him to go to Inter. Shaqiri needed regular playing time again.

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As noted by the piece, the Reds were reportedly very keen on bringing Shaqiri in midseason, and he’s the kind of player who could have potentially added a fresh dimension to Brendan Rodgers’ team. Indeed, since signing for Inter, the Swiss international has impressed in the handful of appearances he’s made for the club.

As we can see courtesy of WhoScored.com, the former Basel man got off to an excellent start at the San Siro:

While Liverpool have been in exceptional form themselves in 2015, you just wonder whether a player like Shaqiri may have potentially given them a vital edge as they continue to hunt down a Champions League spot. But in the same breath, if they were interested and did exceed Inter’s offer, then there’s little more the club could have done.

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Ultimately, Shaqiri has picked a team that will guarantee him first-team football, and while he may not be featuring in the Champions League for a while yet, there’s little doubt he’s already reaping the benefits of becoming a critical cog in this Inter side.

Barcelona Keen on Miralem Pjanic

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According to La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Joe Short of the Daily Express), Barcelona are the latest club to join Liverpool and Manchester United in the race for Miralem Pjanic, with the Catalonians confident the Bosnia-Herzegovina star will wait it out until January 2016 before leaving Roma.

Here’s a look at why a club of the Blaugrana’s stature could well be interested in Pjanic:

Indeed, the midfield maestro has been exceptional for the majority of the season. He’s the heartbeat of this Giallorossi team, shouldering the responsibility of managing the game for Rudi Garcia’s troops and doing so with a real swagger.

His intelligence on the ball, range of passing and fleet of foot makes it no surprise whatsoever that Luis Enrique’s side are apparently chasing the 25-year-old, and he'd seamlessly slot into the heart of the Barcelona team.

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Encouragingly for the Anfield faithful, as we can see here courtesy of Adam Digby of FourFourTwo, some reports in Italy have suggested the player is very keen on a move to Anfield, though:

He would be some coup for the Reds. With Steven Gerrard set to leave the club this summer, Liverpool will be crying out for a player who can dictate things in the middle of the park and while Pjanic isn’t quite as dynamic as the captain once was in his heyday, he’s the kind of player that would enrich Rodgers' side with an array of technical qualities.

For the Reds, the worry is if a club like Barcelona come in—or even United—who can offer the player Champions League football, it’s going to be very difficult for them to present a more attractive option at Anfield.

If they can push on and secure fourth spot in the remainder of the campaign, it’ll leave them with a much better chance of signing players of Pjanic’s immense calibre in the summer