Bastian Schweinsteiger has returned to Manchester United training amidst United’s horrendous Premier League run, which has led to the players and the manager being heavily criticised for their performances. The 32-year-old German was excluded right from the start of the season as incoming manager Jose Mourinho didn’t deem him good enough for the first team.
Although he is still out of United’s squad and will not feature in their Europa League match against Fenerbahce as he was omitted from the squad, since Mourinho’s decision has failed miserably with the United the team sitting 8th in the table, the German could yet have a say in helping the team improve its situation.
It seems that the ongoings have led to the club softening their claim of not playing Bastian. According to Sportsmail, he has also been returned his first team locker. Bastian is essentially a holding midfielder, who likes to orchestrate the game deep from the midfield. His height and athletic build make him a perfect anchor in English Premier League.
Schweini was essentially brought in for that. But, after making 18 Premier League appearances last season, he has not played for United since the Portuguese took over as manager from Louis van Gaal this year. United’s current pivot is generally taken by Ander Herrera, Paul Pogba and Marouane Fellaini, who have been pretty disappointing in doing their job.
Bastian’s option in that position could really allow Paul Pogba to push forward and support Ibrahimović, which Mourinho has been seen trying to do in few matches. Fellaini hasn’t been the best of options in that position. With an experienced player like Bastian in the middle, Herrera could also reach his full potential.
While Fellaini adds the much-needed muscle in the deeper midfield area, he isn’t the most creative of players when it comes to his passing. Schweinsteiger is someone who can complement Pogba well in the midfield with his distribution and that could potentially add more balance to the team. He will have to be played against certain teams though as he has lost his pace and isn’t as mobile as he used to be in his heydays at Bayern.
Mourinho, however, already has plans to offload him this January, with US Major League Soccer being one potential destination. United would allow him to depart on a free transfer, freeing up more than £130,000 a week in wages. United have already spend astronomical amounts in bringing in the right players and the same strategy might not work out in the January transfer market.
Bastian has two months to prove his potential both on the training ground and if given chance in the league and things might turn around for United.