The Swiss international has had limited opportunities since arriving from Stoke City in the summer.
Jurgen Klopp is renowned for allowing new signings extra time to settle in and adjust to his methods and style.
But when Shaqiri has featured, his creativity and energy has been easy on the eye sparking belief he has a big part to play at Anfield.
The 27-year-old scored his second goal for the club in Sunday’s 2-0 victory over bottom of the table Fulham.
Thorsten Fink used to manage Shaqiri at Basel between 2009-2011 and has heaped praise on his former player.
“Cristiano Ronaldo, he worked for what he achieved,” Fink told ESPN. “But Lionel Messi, he had it.
“He didn’t have to work for this talent. Ronaldo must work for this – work with this body, work with everything.
“For me, Messi has this talent. That’s also for Shaqiri.
“He has this talent to play. If he works very professionally, he can be the best player for Liverpool – not only a player.
“Every time the aim must to be better and make the next step. If you play for Liverpool not every week, it cannot be enough for him. His aim must be to play every week.”
Shaqiri was a shining light in a dismal Stoke side that were relegated from the Premier League last season under Mark Hughes and Paul Lambert.
But now the Swiss international is surrounded by players of top quality and Fink has challenged him to take his game to the next level.
“With his possibilities, it’s not enough to play for Stoke,” he added.
“He can play for the biggest club in the world because of the talent he has. That’s what I wanted.
“[He has] Everything for the perfect footballer.
“The only thing is: ‘Can you make the next step, Xherdan?’ If you want to play for Liverpool or Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or Man United, and you want to play every time – not just be the man who sits on the bench – you need more professionalism.”