Bastian Schweinsteiger has been told there could be a place for him back at Bayern Munich as the midfielder’s future at Manchester United looks increasingly bleak.
Schweinsteiger turned 32 on Monday, the same day his locker in United’s first-team dressing room was cleared out and he was ordered to train with the reserves by new United manager Jose Mourinho.
He is one of nine players told they are free to go on loan by Mourinho that are not in his plans.
Schweinsteiger announced his international retirement last week after 12 years, 24 goals and 120 appearances for Germany.
At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, he enhanced his reputation as his battling display in Germany’s midfield helped beat Argentina in the final.
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After winning eight Bundesliga titles with Bayern, as well as the German Cup seven times and the 2013 Uefa Champions League, he moved to United in 2015.
But his star has fallen after an injury-ravaged season in Manchester which yielded only 31 appearances, and Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has said the door is open for him to return.
"Should he speak at some point about a desire to return, then we will discuss it with him," Rummenigge told magazine Sport Bild.
The imminent return of France’s Paul Pogba to United, and his own demotion, means Schweinsteiger’s days in Manchester look numbered with two years left on his contract.
His reported annual wage bill of £7.5 million (Dh36.6m) might put off any potential employer.
The midfielder has been linked to AC Milan and Inter Milan, as well as Paris Saint-Germain, while any Major League Soccer club would be delighted by the profile boost his arrival in the USA would bring.
Schweinsteiger, who married tennis player Ana Ivanovic last month, is weighing up his options.
Rummenigge said he does not expect Schweinsteiger to struggle to find a new club and it seems he has a future with Bayern when he hangs up his boots for good.
“It’s important to bind players who deserve it to the club,” Bayern captain Philipp Lahm said.
“Basti knows everyone and everything here, he would be predestined to work in the team.”
Bayern have a history of finding jobs for their chosen sons and Rummenigge has already said they will “discuss the matter in due course.”
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