Three things we learned from Xherdan Shaqiri’s interview

He’s got top tier self-belief

All professional sportsman have to have some level of self-belief and confidence but it appears as if Xherdan Shaqiri has it in spades. Throughout the fairly long interview, the main thing that comes across is how much the Switzerland star believes in himself.

Some highlights include:

"“Everywhere I go they know me as a player.” “(I go from) zero to make a great pass or score a nice goal.” “Look where I played, look how many trophies I won.”"

But that doesn’t mean the former Potteries man seems arrogant or above himself. The opposite rings true, in fact, as Shaqiri comes across as a grounded man with a keen idea that he’s in a position of privilege and has natural ability that people who kill for.

However, you do see the mentality you need in order to reach the top of your game. You need to have a thick skin and you need to be able to keep your head up when others are calling you the worst things in the world.

A lot of that will come from experience, too. Shaqiri has won the Champions League with Bayern Munich and Liverpool, he’s won leagues in Switzerland, he’s played at the top level of Serie A with Inter Milan and then struggled against relegation with Stoke.

He’s done it all – and now he’s on the cusp of winning the Premier League at Liverpool as well as adding a second European crown last season.

When you consider those facts, it appears as if all the self-belief and confidence is grounded with his impressive track record.