Manchester United outcast Bastian Schweinsteiger rejoined first-team training today.
The former Germany captain, 32, has not played a minute for the club since Jose Mourinho’s arrival and seemed certain to spend the entire season out in the cold.
One of Mourinho’s first moves was to remove the former Bayern Munich midfielder from the senior squad’s training sessions and he was not even named in the club’s Europa League list.
United sit eighth in the Premier League after 10 matches and whether their modest recent run has prompted a change of heart is unknown.
But Schweinsteiger was back in the thick of things at United’s Aon Training Complex in Carrington, and was pictured prominently in a series of images shared by the club on social media.
Back to work for #MUFC! pic.twitter.com/laCEkCnqOc
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 31, 2016
The World Cup winner was seen wearing a club-branded hat as he works under Mourinho’s supervision and in one image appears to receive a warm embrace from United skipper Wayne Rooney.
A view from the Aon Training Complex... #MUFC https://t.co/pOcpb303yc
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 31, 2016
Schweinsteiger’s last competitive match came as a substitute in the European Championship semi-final defeat by France and he last featured for the Red Devils under Louis van Gaal in March.
He was even written off as an asset in the club’s financial results for the year ending June 30, 2016.
