Jose Mourinho 'regrets' treatment of Schweinsteiger at Manchester United
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho regrets the way he treated Bastian Schweinsteiger and apologised to the midfielder before his switch to the Chicago Fire.
What had long felt an inevitable exit was confirmed last week, with the 32-year-old swapping Old Trafford for Major League Soccer.
Schweinsteiger largely flattered to deceive at United after arriving in 2015, but the World Cup winner had precious little chance to turn things around once frozen out by Mourinho the following summer.
The former Germany midfielder dropped so far down the pecking order that the club even wrote him off as an asset in their accounts, only for him to make a surprise return from the cold.
Schweinsteiger made four appearances after being brought back into the first team in late October, but was last week granted a move to the United States - a deal Mourinho could not stand in the way of having accepted he mistreated the midfielder.
"He's in the category of players that I feel sorry for something that I did to him," Mourinho said.
"I don't want to speak about him as a player, I don't want to speak as I buy or not to buy. I want to speak about him as a professional, as a human being.
"The last thing I told him before he left 'I was not right with you once, I have to be right with you now'.
"So when he was asking me to let him leave I had to say 'yes, you can leave' because I did it once, I cannot do it twice.
"So I feel sorry for the first period with him, he knows that. I am happy that he knows because I told him.
"I will miss a good guy, a good professional, a good influence in training - a very good influence.
"I could not stop him to go even knowing that until the end of the season we have so many matches and we would probably need him for a few matches or a few periods.
"I had to let him go and now publicly wish him and his wife a very happy life in Chicago."
Asked if he regrets the way he treated him, Mourinho said: "Yeah, I do."
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones are among the absentees for United's Premier League clash with West Brom.
Ibrahimovic and Ander Herrera serve domestic bans on Saturday, when midfielder Pogba will be absent with a hamstring injury.
Defenders Jones and Smalling were forced out of the England squad after sustaining what Mourinho called "long-term injuries", but captain Wayne Rooney is available. Marouane Fellaini is a doubt.
However, West Brom manager Tony Pulis does not think United's injury and suspension problems will make his side's task any easier at Old Trafford.
"If you look at United's squad, in fact at all the top-six clubs, they have some fantastic players," said Pulis.
"They're able to compete in all major competitions this year because they've got strong squads, they haven't just got 11 players. They've got 25 players, all internationals.
"If Jose gets a few injuries he can replace them with experienced internationals who have cost a lot of money, it'll still be a top team."
Nacer Chadli is an injury concern for West Brom. The midfielder has returned from international duty with Belgium nursing a shoulder injury and he will be assessed along with striker Salomon Rondon, who only linked back up with the Albion squad on Friday following his World Cup qualifying exploits with Venezuela.
Matt Phillips continues to struggle with a hamstring injury and he is likely to remain out.
Source: PAR
