'Jose Mourinho apologised to me' - Bastian Schweinsteiger opens up on miserable season at Man Utd and admits Red Devils 'should have achieved more' with Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic

The German midfielder arrived from Bayern Munich in July 2015 but saw his debut season under Louis van Gaal curtailed by a serious knee injury. When Mourinho arrived, Schweinsteiger had already been banned from first-team training, which he believes may be down to his decision to have treatment in Germany rather than Manchester - despite being given permission by Van Gaal.

Due to the fact Schweinsteiger played under Mourinho's rival Pep Guardiola at Bayern, there were suggestions the Portuguese boss did not trust the veteran midfielder because of the managers' contrasting playing styles. However, the 2014 World Cup winner believes Mourinho played little to no part in his United struggles and says the pair enjoyed a good relationship in Manchester.

Schweinsteiger told FourFourTwo: “I must say, I always had a pretty good relationship with Jose Mourinho. When we spoke, it was very respectful. I really liked his character. He [Mourinho] 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.”

Schweinsteiger made just 35 appearances for United across all competitions, scoring three goals and earning himself an FA Cup winner's medal in 2015-16. The German then departed Manchester in March 2017 to join Major League Soccer franchise Chicago Fire, and he guided them to the playoffs the same year after a five-year drought. He then called time on his playing career in October 2019 and took up a role in punditry.

Mourinho is on the hunt for a new job after being sacked by Roma back in January. The ex-United boss had guided the Giallorossi to Europa Conference League glory in 2021-22 but his failure to qualify for the Champions League ultimately saw him dismissed and replaced by Daniele De Rossi. Mourinho continues to be linked with top jobs in European football, although no conclusive information on his next step has yet emerged.