Red Star Belgrade Say Xherdan Shaqiri Will Be Protected in Liverpool's UCL Visit

Red Star Belgrade have said Kosovo-born Liverpool forward Xherdan Shaqiri will be protected during the Reds' UEFA Champions League visit after the Switzerland international sparked tensions at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. 

Sky Sports' Tommaso Fiore explained Shaqiri risked igniting tensions in the Balkans when he celebrated a last-gasp winner against Serbia with a gesture of the Albanian eagle. Red Star's general director Zvezdan Terzic said that despite the controversy, he will be looked after in Belgrade:

"Of course, as a soccer club, we treat our rivals equally, and we do not have to deal with the past and the history.

"Red Star must do everything to make Shaqiri feel that he came to play football and it is our duty to protect him in the case of unwanted situations. Let's be good hosts."

Liverpool begin their Champions League Group C campaign at home to Paris Saint Germain on September 18 and will host Red Star on October 24, after which they'll travel to Serbia for the return leg on November 6.

Terzic also doubted whether Shaqiri would play in the November trip, per Anfield HQ:

Shaqiri, who was still at Stoke City when he scored against Serbia in the World Cup group stage, was reluctant to discuss the celebration after the match in Russia.

Per the Associated Press (h/t Sky Sports), he said: "I think about this, I don't want to speak. In football, you have always emotions. You can see what I did, and it's just emotion, and I'm just happy to have scored the goal. I did it, and we don't have to speak about this."

That report also mentioned team-mate Granit Xhaka was fined for making the Albanian eagle gesture after scoring earlier in the same match.

Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi, a Germany international who also has links to Kosovo, recently brought the debate back into the spotlight when he replicated the eagle celebration in Saturday's 3-2 win over Cardiff City, via Optus Sport (U.S. only):

In any case, Red Star have got bigger threats to consider from their impending English opponents more so than Shaqiri, who has played a combined 27 minutes in his two Premier League appearances for Liverpool.

The Swiss star was signed from Stoke as a much-needed alternative on the right flank to Mohamed Salah, who is far more likely to deal damage to any of their Champions League opponents.

That being said, manager Jurgen Klopp may be wary of how he uses Shaqiri against Red Star, particularly in November's trip to Red Star Stadium in Serbia's capital, where he would be the focus of many home supporters.

The Merseysiders made it to the final of last season's competition, and beating the Serbian team will be critical to their hopes of advancing from a group that also contains PSG and Napoli.