Xherdan Shaqiri places his hand on his heart during Kosovo national anthem as Switzerland player

Switzerland star Xherdan Shaqiri held his hand over his heart during the Kosovo national anthem on Saturday.

The 31-year-old was born in the Kosovan city of Gjilan in 1992 before he and his family emigrated to Switzerland a year later.

It was in the central European country where Shaqiri would begin his career in professional football, with FC Basel his first senior club.

He has competed at the top level ever since having featured for Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Liverpool.

Shaqiri also has an impressive amount to show for his efforts on the international stage with 114 appearances for Switzerland, his most recent coming against the former Yugoslav nation.

It therefore saw Shaqiri return to his home country and he paid homage to his roots before kick-off by holding his hand over his heart during the Kosovo national anthem.

He is said to have done the same for the Switzerland anthem as he showed his respect to both countries.

Shaqiri also received a standing ovation from Kosovan fans when he was substituted during the 2-2 draw at the Fadil Vokrri Stadium.

The result sees Switzerland remain top of their Euro 2024 qualifying group, with their opponents lying fifth out of six.

Shaqiri has assisted twice during their campaign thus far but was unable to contribute against his birth country.

Having spent most of his career in the top European leagues, he now plays his football at MLS side Chicago Fire.

He signed in 2022 for a club-record fee of around £6million, scoring 12 goals and assisting another 11 in 57 appearances thus far.

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