Manchester United Transfer News: Stunning Bastian Schweinsteiger Terms Revealed

Manchester United may have pulled off one of the signings of the summer in landing Bastian Schweinsteiger from Bayern Munich, but the German midfielder isn’t a cheap acquisition for the Red Devils.

According to Jeremy Cross of the Daily Star, the 30-year-old is now the highest-paid midfielder in the Premier League, pocketing a staggering £275,000-a-week at Old Trafford. Cross claims the deal will see the World Cup winner oust Manchester City’s Yaya Toure, who was the midfielder previously picking up the most lucrative package.

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The salary means that United would shell out £40 million in wages for Schweinsteiger should he see out the full term of his new three-year deal. Naturally, there are plenty asking already whether or not the German midfielder will be worth the outlay.

Injuries have certainly taken plenty away from Schweinsteiger’s game recently. During Bayern’s treble-winning season in 2012-13, the German was the standout midfielder in European football, bossing games with his unrelenting industry and superb range of passing. But he’s been steadily declining in recent seasons.

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Problems with his ankles have seen the German skipper struggle to put together consecutive games and aside from his country’s World Cup win in 2014, he’s not sparkled in the past couple of campaigns. Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe is quizzical about the move:

But Schweinsteiger is still a tremendous midfielder and for United he’ll add many attributes that have been scarce ever since Louis van Gaal took over at the club. His game will also be much more suited to the Dutchman’s principles, as opposed to the meticulous passing style Pep Guardiola has implemented at Bayern.

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As Squawka Football noted here, there are intangible qualities Schweinsteiger possesses that will make him a key figure at Old Trafford too:

For a team like United that have fallen on hard times recently, getting in a figure who is a leader, a winner and vastly experienced is a brilliant move. He may be a faded force on the pitch, but Schweinsteiger is someone younger players will gravitate to throughout the season and set impeccable standards for those around him.

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Bleacher Report’s Rob Blanchette is delighted with the German’s acquisition:

The money may seem excessive for a player who is past his peak, but for a club such as United, it’s affordable and necessary if they are to reestablish themselves at the summit of English and European football. And Schweinsteiger is a player who has the qualities that’ll help expedite the process.

Sure, these sums will be used as a stick to beat United with should they surge up the Premier League table. But Schweinsteiger is a fantasy capture and when the Old Trafford crowd see the German prowling around midfield in the iconic red jersey for them, he’ll be worth every penny.