Thursday 10 September 2015 07:55, UK
Manchester United spent only £6.5m to bring Germany World Cup winner Bastian Schweinsteiger to Old Trafford this summer, according to a statement released by the midfielder's first club TSV 1860 Rosenheim.
Schweinsteiger left Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich in July to join United and team up with manager Louis van Gaal for the second time in his career, having previously worked under him during the Dutchman's spell in charge at the Allianz Arena.
The fee was widely reported to be £15m, but it would appear United paid less than half of that amount to bring Schweinsteiger to Manchester.
TSV 1860 Rosenheim - the club where Schweinsteiger began his youth career in 1992 - released a statement on Wednesday in an attempt to finally end speculation over how much the club received from a sell-on clause included in the 31-year-old's contract at Bayern.
"The transfer fee adds up to €9m (£6.54m)," a club statement read. "We have been credited for two years [that Schweinsteiger spent at the club].
"We will receive the payment in two instalments, and after deducting the advisor and legal costs, we will receive €19,000 (£13,770).
"We already received the first instalment in August. We are delighted about Bastian's incredible career and also that we profit from it financially as his first club.
"For us, this is again an incentive to continue to put a lot of power in our youth. We will use the money for our high-quality football education."
Rosenheim, an amateur side located in the south of Germany, are currently competing in the regional fifth division of the Bayernliga Sud.
Schweinsteiger moved from Rosenheim to Bayern in 1998 as a 13-year-old and spent 17 years with the club, winning eight league titles as well as the Champions League in 2013.
He made his United debut as a substitute in the 1-0 victory over Tottenham on the opening day of the new Premier League season. Schweinsteiger has since started the last three matches for United.
United spent a reported £110m during the summer on Schweinsteiger, Memphis Depay, Morgan Schneiderlin, Matteo Darmian and Anthony Martial.
France international Martial joined United on transfer deadline day for £36m, in a deal which could rise to £58m.
United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has since been accused of overpaying for the 19-year-old forward, who has played only 72 times in his career scoring just 15 goals.
