BASTIAN SCHWEINSTEIGER has revealed he had a good relationship with Jose Mourinho – despite being frozen out of the first team at Man Utd.
The midfielder spoke about how he was forced to train with the under-16s in an interview with Gary Neville on The Overlap.
Schweinsteiger was frozen out of the first team under MourinhoGETTY
He has since revealed more information about his isolation at the club.
Speaking to FourFourTwo, he described his relationship with Mourinho and how the Man Utd hierarchy may have been responsible for freezing him out.
Schweinsteiger joined United from Bayern Munich in 2015, a year before Mourinho became manager after Louis van Gaal.
He hinted that undergoing treatment for a knee injury in Germany, despite permission from Van Gaal, may have upset the club’s hierarchy.
Schweinsteiger said: “I always had a pretty good relationship with Jose Mourinho.
“I don’t know, maybe it was a decision by the board.
“You need to understand: I injured my knee the season before, I said I was going to have my treatment in Manchester, then the same injury happened again and the Euros were coming up.
“So I asked the club and Louis van Gaal if I could have the treatment in Germany.
“For a player, the most important thing is to be healthy and to come back as soon as possible.
“That was my goal, so I decided it like that, but it was not a decision against Manchester United.”
Schweinsteiger also revealed that Mourinho later apologised for how he was treated.
Schweinsteiger said: “He apologised to me later.
“I gave him a handshake and said ‘All good, don’t worry’.
“I would’ve liked to have played more, definitely, and with Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, because with those two players I think we could have achieved much more.
“But I’m grateful to the supporters for the way they welcomed me when I had the chance to play.
“My dream was to play at Old Trafford again and it happened after a while, after training on my own, or with the under-19s or under-17s.
“Playing at Old Trafford again really meant a lot to me.”
Jose Mourinho explains reason behind his Man Utd exit
By NEIL CUSTIS
JOSE MOURINHO says a lack of trust from the top denied him more success at Manchester United.
Mourinho spent two-and-a-half years in the Old Trafford hotseat, winning two trophies, reaching an FA Cup final and finishing second in the Premier League.
But he was sacked in December 2018 and believes he was not backed properly in the transfer market by then executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward.
Mourinho said: “What Erik ten Hag has in his time at United I didn’t.
“I didn’t have that level of support or trust.
“So I left sad, because I felt I was in the beginning of the process. I felt if they trusted me and believed in my experience, things could be different.”