Bayern Munich Alumni: Bastian Schweinsteiger picks his starting XI for Germany...and he has a few shockers

Germany boss Hansi Flick has his provisional list of players that he has made eligible for the World Cup in Qatar, but there are a few weeks to go before he narrows it down to his starting XI.

Surely, Bayern Munich will be well-represented and club legend Bastian Schweinsteiger already knows who would represent Germany on the pitch for game one:

• Striker: Thomas Müller, Bayern Munich
• Left-wing: Leroy Sané, Bayern Munich
• Attacking midfielder: Jamal Musiala, Bayern Munich
• Right-wing: Marco Reus, Borussia Dortmund
• Central midfield: Joshua Kimmich, Bayern Munich
• Central midfield: Leon Goretzka, Bayern Munich
• Left-back: Christian Günter, SC Freiburg
• Center-back: Nico Schlotterbeck, Borussia Dortmund
• Center-back: Antonio Rüdiger, Real Madrid
• Right-back: Jonas Hofmann, Borussia Mönchengladbach
• Goalkeeper: Manuel Neuer, Bayern Munich

Twitter account @iMiaSanMia_en provided what the visual of that lineup might look like:

Surely, there are a few surprises there. Left-back has mostly been manned by RB Leipzig’s David Raum and Inter Milan’s Robin Gosens in recent years, but neither player has been at the top if his game this season. At center-back, Borussia Dortmund Niklas Süle was left out of the starting squad by Schweinsteiger, which would be a bit of a surprise.

At right-back, Germany has another toss up position, so Schweinsteiger went with Hofmann over RB Leipzig’s Lukas Klostermann, Paris Saint-Germain’s Thilo Kehrer, and SC Freiburg’s Matthias Ginter.

Otherwise, Marco Reus at right-wing over Serge Gnabry was a shock, while Schweinsteiger also went with his golf buddy, Müller, over RB Leipzig’s Timo Werner and Chelsea FC’s Kai Havertz. Both Werner and Havertz could find playing time in different positions (as could Musiala, Reus, and Müller depending on what Flick wants to do).

Whatever the case, Flick does not have an easy job and picking the best XI will be a hotly debated topic among Germany’s fanbase.