Manchester United Transfer News: Bastian Schweinsteiger Reacts to MLS Rumours

Manchester United midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger has opened the door for a move to Major League Soccer, but he wants to continue for the Red Devils for now and battle his way back into the plans of manager Jose Mourinho.

As reported by Rob Dawson of the Manchester Evening News, rumours have surfaced linking the former Bayern Munich star with a move to the United States, even though his priority is still United:

The 32-year-old reacted to those rumours after his final match for Germany, a 2-0 win over Finland, by admitting he likes New York.

He did emphasise his focus is on his current club, however, per ZDF (h/t the Daily Mirror's Liam Corless): "New York is a great city, but I have a contract with United until 2018 and you know what the atmosphere is like at Old Trafford. It's my dream to run out there (for Manchester United) again. I hope I get the chance to help the team again."

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Schweinsteiger moved to Old Trafford in July 2015 after a lengthy career with Bayern, but his first season in England was hardly a success. He was held back by injuries and couldn't convince when he was fit to play, coming up short most noticeably in the UEFA Champions League.

Mourinho replaced Louis van Gaal as manager during the summer and promptly froze the veteran out, leading to plenty of transfer speculation. His lack of popularity at the club was evident during and after the match against Finland on Wednesday when former club Bayern praised the midfielder and United's social media accounts posted nothing:

The Schweinsteiger situation has actually led to some friction between the two clubs. As explained by Michael Kelleher of Sky Sports, the Bavarians have taken several public shots at United for their treatment of the player, and Mourinho couldn't help but fire back:

"

I thought after I read some quotes from people at Bayern Munich that they would run to Manchester to bring him (Schweinsteiger) back, but no, that did not happen.

I am quite surprised that Mr Rummennigge is not here now to take him back.

"

A switch to MLS could provide a solution, as it's the kind of move plenty of veterans have made in the last few years.

Once regarded as something of a retirement league for European stars, the USA's top competition has attracted players who proved they could still hang with the best of them in the past two years, including Andrea Pirlo and Frank Lampard.

Both were significantly older than Schweinsteiger is right now, but he has already confirmed he won't move to a European club, and given his lack of chances in Manchester, that leaves few options.

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The Chinese league has seen a major influx of talent in the last year, but most of their big-name signings have been South American players. Schweinsteiger's admission that he likes New York seems to indicate his preference would be for New York City FC or New York Red Bulls, two of the leading clubs in MLS.

The summer transfer window may have closed, but don't expect these rumours to go away any time soon. Schweinsteiger is too good not to at least make the bench for United, and sooner rather than later, the desire to play regular football again will push him out of the exit door.