Ed Woodward to MUTV in July 2015: “When people see Bastian Schweinsteiger on the team sheet, that’s going to send some shivers down the spine.” This prediction by Manchester United’s then executive vice-president, about Louis van Gaal’s new midfield signing, proved to be badly off‑target as the World Cup-winner’s career at the club proved to be a disappointment.
Two years after Woodward’s bullish statement, Schweinsteiger departed for Chicago Fire with a paltry 35 appearances and two goals for United on his CV, having been forced to train for a while with the youngsters by José Mourinho, Van Gaal’s successor. Here, in microcosm, is the story of virtually all midfield recruits by United for a generation. The hope at the club is that this trend changed this summer, with the arrivals of Youri Tielemans for £35m from Aston Villa and Andrey Santos for £48m plus £2m in add-ons from Chelsea, with the manager, Michael Carrick, also closing in on Brighton’s Carlos Baleba.
