The Switzerland international is widely expected to leave Bayern Munich in January and his former coach believes the time is right for him to move on

Former Switzerland coach Ottmar Hitzfeld has urged Xherdan Shaqiri to leave Bayern Munich in the January transfer window as he feels Pep Guardiola’s lack of trust is holding the winger back.

The 23-year-old has been struggling to secure regular first-team action under the former Barcelona coach and has mainly been warming the bench this campaign.

Inter and Liverpool are closely monitoring Shaqiri’s situation at the Allianz Arena side, with the former believed to be sitting in pole position to lure him away from Bayern, and Hitzfeld believes the time is right for the attacker to move on.

“The time has come where it is best for Xherdan to leave the club. He needs a new challenge. It is important for him now to make the next step in his development and be a starter on a regular basis,” Hitzfeld was quoted as saying by Blick.

“We saw in the past six months or so that Guardiola did not trust him for the full 100 per cent, even when Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben were injured. It was not easy for him that he still did not feature from the start then.

“Xherdan has also benefited from Guardiola’s arrival, but it was clear that the coach never really fully supported him.”

Shaqiri has made nine Bundesliga appearances so far this term, scoring once in the process.