Is Bastian Schweinsteiger a Help or Hindrance to Germany?

Bastian Schweinsteiger looked exhausted on Saturday as he spoke to German broadcaster ZDF after the 2-0 win over Hungary in which he returned to action after a knee injury he suffered on international duty with Germany ahead of a friendly against England back in March.

“Twenty-five to 30 minutes has done me good,” the 31-year-old said, per the German football association (DFB) official website. “But 90 minutes is too much for the first game. I am fitter going into the Euros than I was two years ago going into the [2014 FIFA] World Cup.”

That’s hard to believe, seeing as Schweinsteiger has played a grand total of 245 minutes of club football for Manchester United in 2016, per Transfermarkt.co.uk.

In the second half of the season leading up to the 2014 World Cup, he was still a regular for Bayern Munich but entered the tournament in Brazil with patella tendon problems, only making it into the starting XI from the final match in the group stage against Ghana.

He was still vital to Germany’s long-awaited fourth world championship, his bloodied face in the final against Argentina going down in the country’s rich football history.

Many believe it was Schweinsteiger’s fighting spirit and the determination he showed while getting battered by the Argentinians in nearly every duel that won Germany the match.

That was two years ago, however, and Schweinsteiger’s inclusion in the 23-man squad for Euro 2016 seems a gamble on the part of head coach Joachim Low. Despite only turning 32 three weeks after the final on July 10, Germany’s captain has looked like an old man in the games he has managed to be on the pitch for in the two years since he led the team to glory.

It begs the question: Is he a help to Germany in France or a hindrance?

If it was only about the sporting value Schweinsteiger can provide, it seems unlikely he would’ve received his call-up. Due to near-constant injuries in recent years, he’s looked like a shadow of his former self both in his last year with the Bavarians and his first season with the Red Devils. 

Louis van Gaal, arguably Schweinsteiger’s biggest mentor and proponent over the years—just ahead of Low—acknowledged as much after a disappointing performance in United’s final match in the UEFA Champions League group stage at Wolfsburg in December.

Per AFP (h/t Yahoo Sports), Van Gaal said: “I took him off and I don’t take players off for nothing, but we are all …

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