Shaqiri transfers to Bayern Munich

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BASEL, Switzerland -- FC Basel's star forward Xherdan Shaqiri will join its Champions League round-of-16 opponent Bayern Munich at the end of the current season.

Basel confirmed the long-speculated transfer Thursday, but did not disclose the fee Bayern will pay for the 20-year-old Switzerland international. Swiss media reported that Bayern will initially pay around 13 million Swiss francs ($14.2 million; C10.7 million).

Shaqiri, whose contract with the Swiss champion ran through 2014, has signed a four-year deal with the German giant, Basel said in a statement on its website.

"The management of FC Basel stuck to its practice of not preventing a player from transferring to a higher ranked league if the conditions and the player's destination are right for all concerned," the club said.

Shaqiri had been expected to move in the January transfer window, but Basel's surprise progression to the Champions League knockout stages after beating Manchester United in December meant the club hung on to its prize asset.

Basel will host Bayern in the first leg on Feb. 22.

It also leads the Swiss League by seven points and has reached the Swiss Cup quarterfinals.

"FC Basel is convinced that Shaqiri will continue to play his part in all three competitions and until the end of the season," his club said.

The Kosovo-born Shaqiri has played 17 times for his adopted country, scoring four goals.

He went to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa as an 18-year-old and appeared as a late substitute in a 0-0 draw against Honduras as the Swiss failed to advance from their group, despite beating eventual champion Spain 1-0.

Shaqiri attracted international attention by scoring a spectacular goal against England in September 2010 as Switzerland lost 3-1 in a European Championship qualifier in Basel. He scored a hat-trick in a 3-1 victory in a qualifier against Bulgaria last September.