Manchester United Transfer News: Bastian Schweinsteiger, Bayern Return Hint Made

Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and club captain Philipp Lahm have both hinted that Manchester United’s Bastian Schweinsteiger could be in line for a surprise return to the club. 

According to Sport Bild (h/t Sport Witness), a move back to the Allianz Arena could be on the cards, and the Bayern pair are quoted, implying a deal may go ahead.

“It is important to involve deserving players,” Lahm said of the former Bayern midfielder. “A man like him [Schweinsteiger] was predestined to work with the club, he knows everything and everyone.”

Meanwhile, Rummenigge stated, “should he speak in the future at some point about a desire to return…then we will discuss it with him.”

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Sport Witness noted there is “no talk of a deal, or even talk of talks” from Sport Bild at the moment, although the report said Rummenigge is “rolling out the red carpet” for Schweinsteiger.

As relayed by Sport Witness, the veteran midfielder looks set to leave Old Trafford after a solitary season at the club.

It’d be a remarkable transfer if Bayern were to bring back Schweinsteiger, having enjoyed so much success with the club earlier in his career. Here is a reminder of some of his best moments with the German champions:

Indeed, before he was sold last summer by former Bayern boss Pep Guardiola, he won eight league titles with the club, as well as the UEFA Champions League in 2012-13. Schweinsteiger has recently retired from international football, too, meaning he’ll have time to focus on domestic action.

At United, things haven’t quite worked out and, according to Jack Gaughan of the Daily Mail, the 32-year-old has been “banished to [the] reserve-team dressing room” by manager Jose Mourinho and advised to find a new club. Schweinsteiger's brother, Tobi, also posted a message reading “no respect” on Twitter on Monday. 

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As noted by Ben Hayward of Goal, despite his success with Bayern and Germany, two of the game’s elite managers don’t seem to be huge fans of the player:

Perhaps a return to Bayern would bring the best out of Schweinsteiger again. Of course, with age and injuries catching up with the player, he wouldn’t have quite the same influence at the club, but he showed often enough during his time with United he still possesses the class to run games at the highest level when fit.

While the club’s supporters would be happy to see him back, manager Carlo Ancelotti may find it difficult to find a place for Schweinsteiger in his squad, even if it was in a peripheral role. Indeed, Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News believes Bayern may have a non-playing position in mind for their former star:

You suspect Schweinsteiger will be keen to prolong his playing days, though. To do that, he needs a strong pre-season and regular football; if he’s with the United reserve team at the moment, his preparations will be far from ideal.

Bayern will always have an affinity with Schweinsteiger and a new manager may see the benefit of having him around the club. However, based on his 2015-16 season, Ancelotti’s predecessor has been vindicated in his decision to move the club icon on.