Shaqiri is not for sale in January, insists Stoke manager

Stoke manager Mark Hughes has issued a hands off warning to any side thinking about a January move for Xherdan Shaqiri.

The Switzerland international is reportedly attracting interest from a number of Premier League teams but Stoke have no interest in losing their best player.

Suitors may hope for a similar situation to Marko Arnautovic, who was sold to West Ham for £25m in the summer, but Hughes is adamant the situations are different.

“I don’t think there’s any enthusiasm for any situation to develop,” The Daily Mirror quote Hughes as saying. “If there are any enquires for Shaq in January, they certainly won’t be given much encouragement.

“Marko wanted to leave, but I don’t get any sense of that with Shaq. We don't encourage it and we don't expect it. We want to add to that type of player as well – players than can change games and get people off their seats.”

The 26-year-old is currently playing his best football since joining Stoke from Inter in a £12m deal in August 2015.

Despite Stoke’s struggles this season, Shaqiri has played a direct hand in eight goals in 12 Premier League appearances (three goals, five assists). In fact, Shaqiri has scored or assisted half of Stoke’s league goals this term.