Summary
Schweinsteiger selects former teammates for ultimate XI, including two Man United icons.
Notable omissions include Lewandowski, Kroos, De Gea, and Ozil.
Schweinsteiger feature for the likes of United, Bayern Munich and the World Cup winning German side in 2014.
Former Manchester United and Bayern Munich star Bastian Schweinsteiger named two Old Trafford heroes when selecting the best XI made up solely of former teammates during his career. The German international was a star for both club and country, winning the World Cup, Champions League and several other domestic titles during his playing days.
Among some of his incredible past teammates are Robert Lewandowski and Toni Kroos. However, neither of the pair made the team, while the likes of David de Gea and Mesut Ozil also fail to feature in his starting XI.
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Goalkeeper and Defenders
Manuel Neuer, Philipp Lahm, Holger Badstuber, Jerome Boateng, David Alaba
Attack wins games, defence wins championships is the age-old saying. And with this backline, Schweinsteiger wouldn't be short of a few titles. In between the sticks is arguably one of the greatest goalkeepers in modern history, if not all time, in Manuel Neuer. The German has been the number one at Bayern Munich for well over a decade, and maintains that position even as age and injuries catch up to him. He is joined by Philipp Lahm at right-back, who would no doubt be captaining the side with his leadership skills.
The heart of the defence is manned by former Bavarian duo Jerome Boateng and Holger Badstuber. While the former did go on to have great success, the latter's career stalled due to injuries, but Schweinsteiger insisted that he was a top-class defender when fit and worthy of his place in the team. That left just one spot remaining, which went to current Real Madrid and Austria star David Alaba.
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Midfielders
Michael Ballack, Wayne Rooney
It's just two in midfield for Schweinsteiger's team, and Michael Ballack will likely have to do much of the defensive leg work with the setup of this team. The former Bayer Leverkusen and Chelsea man may have had some of the worst luck in major finals history, but that doesn't take away from the fact he was a tremendous player who had just about everything a man operating in the engine room could wish for.
Alongside him is an icon who did spend most of his career further up the pitch. Though, by the time Schweinsteiger was playing alongside him, he had been moved into a slightly deeper role — that of course being Wayne Rooney. The English legend was showing signs of physical decline when his German counterpart moved to the North West of England, but his technical ability allowed him to settle into a deep-lying role where, if Jose Mourinho had continued to play him there, he could've flourished.
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Attackers
Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, Thomas Muller, Zlatan Ibrahimovic
As we enter the final third of the pitch, we see three men who are as synonymous with Bayern Munich's success in the 2010s as anyone. Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery were the most dangerous of duos together during this time period, despite the fact that they operated on completely opposite sides of the pitch from one another. However, their strengths blended impeccably, helping build an often unstoppable attacking force.
The person often pulling the strings for that, though, was Thomas Muller. For the longest periods, one of the most underrated footballers in all of the sport, Muller was not a typical striker, as he would often create space for others to thrive in and focus less on scoring himself — even though he was more than capable of doing so.
As for the man tasked with scoring the majority of the goals in this team, that would be Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He and Schweinsteiger only managed a short stint together at Manchester United, but it was clearly enough to leave a lasting impression on the World Cup-winning midfielder.
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt - accurate as of 10/05/2025.