He may not be a regular starter at Bayern Munich, but the young winger remains the focal point of a Swiss side that have established themselves as an emerging force.
And the 22-year-old rose to the occasion when it mattered on Wednesday, his tour de force securing a win that meant Switzerland progressed from Group E behind France, who drew 0-0 with Ecuador to ensure the South American nation crashed out.
With his side smarting from a 5-2 drubbing at the hands of France last Friday, Shaqiri settled any nerves when he scored a sixth-minute thunderbolt before sliding home a second before half-time.
Shaqiri's one-man show continued for much of the opening exchanges, epitomised when he fired just wide midway through the first half.
Such trepidation almost brought about an equaliser when Brayan Beckeles capitalised on the Swiss' inability to clear a corner by volleying just wide on the swivel.
But Shaqiri showed his class once again in the 31st minute when Victor Bernardez's failure to intercept a searching ball freed Josip Drmic, who slipped a pass inside for the 22-year-old to slide the ball home.
Shaqiri was on hand to show another flash of Switzerland’s threat at the other end, only to be denied by Noel Valladares – who was quickly off his line to keep out his effort.
Drmic was again the provider, racing on to Rodriguez's searching long ball before jinking past Bernardez and sliding across a fine delivery that left Shaqiri with the simplest of tap-ins.
