Transfer Rumors: Orlando City Linked with Bastian Schweinsteiger

Bastian Schweinsteiger is now on the wrong side of 30, and his current contract with German giants Bayern Munich is set to expire in 2016. In today's media climate, that pretty much guarantees a rumor linking the legendary midfielder with a move to Major League Soccer.

Turkish outlet Haberciniz today has linked Schweinsteiger with a potential move to the U.S., with Orlando City, New York Red Bulls and New York City FC being potential landing spots. According to Ligaportal, Schweinsteiger and Bayern shelved contract talks prior to last summer’s World Cup in Brazil and have yet to resume negotiations.

Schweinsteiger has never played for a club other than Bayern Munich, and his career with the Bundesliga side has been a decorated one: He's won seven Bundesliga titles (and is on track for another this season), seven German cups, a pair of League Cups and the UEFA Champions League during his decade-plus in Munich. He is also a legend in the German national side, having helped Die Mannschaft claim the World Cup title in 2014 and having over 100 caps to his name.

Schweinsteiger has seen his minutes dry up a bit this season, however, due to injuries and Pep Guardiola's reported preference to have Xabi Alonso bossing things in Schweiny's normal midfield role.

Does this rumor actually make sense? Like most of them, probably not. Orlando City already has a certain Brazilian Designated Player in the midfield, who just so happens to be the highest paid player in MLS. OCSC would have to compensate Schweinsteiger substantially as well, as a player of his pedigree can easily demand top dollar in the event of a move to the States.

Although this rumor is somewhat laughable at the moment, if anything were to change with Kaká between now and the summer of 2016, we would certainly welcome Schweiny to the City Beautiful with open arms.