Bastian Schweinsteiger insists he is relishing life at Manchester United and has jokingly stated: "Manchester is not as bad as everybody thinks."

The 31-year-old midfielder moved to Old Trafford in July, bringing an end to more than a decade at Bayern Munich, where he won 20 major trophies.  

It has been a low-key start at United – who have taken seven from a possible 12 points from their opening four games - for Schweinsteiger, but he is enjoying the challenge of adapting to the frantic pace of the Premier League. 

"Of course everything is new to me. But it is a lot of fun," said Schweinsteiger on Tuesday while away on international duty with Germany. 

"The club is huge. Sadly we gave away a few points in the last two games [a 0-0 draw with Newcastle United and Sunday's 2-1 defeat at Swansea City]. Otherwise we would be in a better position right now. 

"So again it is a lot of fun and it is something really great to be there. Manchester is also not as bad as everybody thinks. 

"We believe that the city is not that beautiful but I can say that the people are really nice and respectful. The city is nice as well." 

Schweinsteiger has been reunited with former Bayern coach Louis van Gaal since joining United. 

And Schweinsteiger said of the Dutchman: "Yes he is still the same Louis van Gaal that we all know. 

"He is very ambitious and he wants to win every game. He is a good guy and knows how to treat the team correctly. 

"It is a lot of fun not just to work with him but with the whole team and the new players. The spirit of the team is great and I hope that we can use the dominance we already had in the games earlier to finally start winning."