“In that moment, I was still super happy at United, I loved to wear the jersey, I loved it. I was thinking that maybe it was just a period, I will train now and keep myself fit and maybe one day they’ll change their mind. My dream was to always step back out into Old Trafford.”
Neville, who was interviewing Schweinsteiger, was shocked by Mourinho’s actions, replying: “I was the PFA Union Representative, and you’re not allowed to do that. You can’t dismiss someone like that, it’s constructive dismissal in some ways. I’m stunned and embarrassed at what I’m hearing because I always think, players leave clubs and people fall out, but there is a way to do things and a way to behave and act.”
Schweinsteiger eventually got an apology from the club and Mourinho when he decided to join the Chicago Fire.