The Schweinsteiger Deal

A club source soon after Keegan's constructive dismissal....

"Jimenez and Wise were on the trail of Sami Nasri, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Valmiro Valdo at Espanyol. They just lost out on Nasri to Arsenal and Schweinsteiger turned us down, even though he was offered £70,000 a week."

The people on Sunday....

"Keegan had lined up a deal to take Germany star Bastian Schweinsteiger to St James' Park for just 3million pounds and a very reasonable, by today's standards anyway, 30,000 pounds a week. But Ashley would not sanction the move and Schweinsteiger stayed at Bayern Munich."

The story as I'd heard it was that Keegan agreed to sell Milner on the condition Schweinsteiger was the replacement. Whether it was Keegan, Wise or Jiminez that suggested going for Schweinsteiger, the result was the same. Ashley didn't deliver on his promise.

The club claim of Schweinsteiger refusing a £70,000 wage offer is the part I'd question above all else though. 2 years down the line he's still earning less than £50,000 a week on his new Bayern Munich contract.