UEFA Champions League 2018/19: 7 players who will play against their former clubs in the Round of 16

#2. Xherdan Shaqiri (Bayern Munich - Liverpool)

Shaqiri struggled for game time at Bayern

Swiss international Xherdan Shaqiri rose through the ranks at FC Basel during the earliest stages of his career, from where he earned a move to Bayern Munich due to commendable performances in the 2012 Euros along with the likes of Mandzukic for Croatia.

Franck Ribery, Arjen Robben, Thomas Muller, and Toni Kroos were the other chief competitors for Shaqiri's midfield role at Bayern. He eventually managed to make his first professional appearance for the Bavarians as a half-time substitute in a DFB-Pokal match against SSV Jahn Regensburg, scoring once and assisting twice in a 4-0 win.

He later repeated the same feat in a UCL match against BATE Borisov, earning his first UCL match ball. The 2012-'13 would be one of his most unforgettable seasons when he went on to win the UCL, Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal with Bayern in their first ever treble.

Later in 2013, he was also able to add the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup medals to his name, making him the most decorated Swiss footballer till date - at the young age of 22.

He later moved to Inter Milan in 2015 and then to England's Stoke City just seven months later, due to a torrid time in Italy. Shaqiri evolved to be one of Stoke's best players over the years, but the club as such deteriorated in performance and finally got itself relegated at the end of last season, which is when he moved to Liverpool, his current club.

Shaqiri is basically a winger but he has been used as a midfield option at Liverpool. The club meanwhile, is enjoying their most favourable run of results in recent years, in both England and Europe. At the time of writing this, Jurgen Klopp's men are the table-toppers at the English Premier League, thanks to some spectacular display of football.

Shaqiri will now be facing his former club Bayern - the club that once made him a European Champion - in the UCL round-of-16, and will be returning to the Allianz Arena one more time, in what promises to be a cracker of a contest, as he will try his very best to go further ahead in the race for the silverware, albeit with his new club this time.