Germany captain Bastian Schweinsteiger's mental strength and class mean that he should be given time to prove himself at Manchester United by new manager Jose Mourinho, according to Andre Schurrle.
Schweinsteiger has not started a game for United since Jan. 9 and missed much of the second half of last season through injury. The midfielder, however, scored in Germany's 2-0 win against Ukraine at Euro 2016 on Sunday, which was his first goal since he headed in for United in their 1-1 draw against Leicester City on Nov. 28.
Mourinho is currently in the process of rebuilding the squad at Old Trafford, leading to doubts over 31-year-old Schweinsteiger's future at the club just a year after joining them from Bayern Munich.
Germany forward Schurrle knows both men, having played for Mourinho at Chelsea and won the World Cup two years ago with Schweinsteiger, and he thinks that the pair should work together.
Schurrle told reporters: "I don't know what Mourinho's plans are at Man United, but I hope he gives him time because he's a great player. I think so, I hope so. He's a great person.
"Mentally, he's so strong. He knows what to do on the pitch and he's so calm. We've seen it in the training sessions. He's been one-and-a-half weeks with the team and class is permanent."
Schurrle was Mourinho's first signing when the Portuguese manager rejoined Chelsea for a second spell in 2013, as the player was recruited from Bayer Leverkusen. The German left only 18 months later though, to join his current club Wolfsburg, having been used mostly as a substitute by Mourinho.
Schurrle said: "It's not that easy to come from the Bundesliga into the Premier League. It's something different and it was not easy for [Schweinsteiger] when he came with the injuries.
"It was a hard year for him. When he's fit, when he's the leader he wants to be, he makes every team better."
Discussing Schweinsteiger's goal against Ukraine, Schurrle said: "It was amazing. When you see the criticism he got -- 'is he fit, is he old, is he too slow?' or whatever -- and then to score like this in an important game is amazing.
"It's good for the team because he's our captain and he's so important for us, and it's good for him to have this confidence."