Manchester United Manager Jose Mourinho gave his weekly press conference today ahead of tomorrow’s clash against Hull City. (You can watch the video of the session in its entirety at this link)
There were many takeaways from the Q&A, but perhaps the most entertaining moment was when Mourinho took a not so subtle swipe at Bayern Munich, and their president Karl-Heinz Rummenigge who earlier this summer criticized United’s handling of Schweinsteiger.
The Bayern boss said he couldn’t believe how United treated the German national team captain and stated his belief that their alleged mistreatment would discourage future players from coming to Old Trafford.
Mourinho jabbed: “I thought, when I read some quotes from people at Bayern Munich, that they would run to Manchester to bring him back, but no, that didn’t happen.”
“I’m quite surprised Karl-Heinze Rummennigge is not here to take him back.”
There were quite a few Schweinsteiger questions in today’s session, which is expected given the German’s very uncertain future at the cub. One reporter solicited Mourinho’s opinion on what Schweinsteiger should do: “I cannot answer for him. It’s his life, his career. He has a contract with Man United. He has a right to make that decision and stay, so that’s not a problem for us,” the Portugese answered.
“Football is made of decisions. I did that all my career. Not just me, everyone does, but some players react in a different way.”
“To be honest, Bastian is not speaking a lot. He gave his last statement, which he is completely free to make, in an objective way, like he did.”
So when will the midfielder who has the most fun name to say in all of sports finally feature again? Is there a place for Schweinsteiger at United?
Mourinho responded: “I think it’s very difficult to happen.”
“I’m not saying it’s impossible, I’m saying its very difficult because we have made a decision made about (Paul) Pogba, (Ander) Herrera, (Morgan) Schneiderlin, (Marouane) Fellaini and (Michael) Carrick.
“We have five players for two positions, so it’s very difficult for an opportunity to arise.”
In other words, there’s really no hope for him right now. It appears that a rash of injuries would be the only way that Schweinsteiger could find his way on to the pitch.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes regularly to the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye publication and Bold Global.
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