‘A very beautiful goal’: Shaqiri praises Walters’ wonder strike for Stoke

Stoke City forward Xherdan Shaqiri has heaped praise on strike partner Jonathan Walters’ after the latter’s exquisite lob in the Potters’ 2-0 win over Burnley on Saturday.

Walters deftly guided Mame Biram Diouf’s whipped cross over Paul Robinson as Mark Hughes’ side sealed three points.

Swiss international Shaqiri waxed lyrical about Republic of Ireland international Walters, who he said “does everything” for the team.

“It was a beautiful goal,” said Shaqiri. “And how we created the goal was very good. I played a one-two with Mame, who crossed directly to Jon for a very beautiful goal.”

“Jonny is a hard worker and you can see that whether he comes on or plays from the beginning.

Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images

“He runs and does everything. That’s important for us.”

Stoke are ninth in the league, having won five of their last seven games following a poor start to the season.

Shaqiri added manager Hughes has had a difficult dilemma when picking his Potters starting eleven in recent weeks due to the team’s form.

“At the moment it’s difficult for the coach to decide who to play because everyone is playing very well,” he said.

“We have a lot of players challenging for places. It’s important for a team to have quality players who can play in any game.

“We have that quality and you can see that. The gaffer didn’t change anything and confidence makes the players better.

“Everyone wants to play and you can see that every day in training. Everyone is giving everything and wants to play. That’s a very positive thing for us.”