Mason Greenwood has been omitted from Olympique Marseille’s travelling squad to take on Sunderland in a pre-season friendly this afternoon.
Should he have made the trip, it would’ve seen the former Manchester United attacker play in England for the first time since he was charged with attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in 2022.
The charges were subsequently dropped in 2023 when key witnesses withdrew their participation from the case, after which United decided to conduct a six-month internal investigation of their own to gain some clarity on how the accusations came to light.
Alas, their inquiry culminated with Greenwood being sent on loan to Getafe for the entirety of the 2023/2024 campaign. A thorough report from The Athletic claimed there were plans in place for United chiefs to reintegrate the player into the first-team at Old Trafford, but they performed a U-turn after a widespread revolt from fans and public figures.
The 22-year-old has since completed a permanent move to Marseille, who beat the likes of Juventus, Napoli and Lazio to his signature, and he has already made his first appearance for the French outfit in a pre-season clash.
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Marseille unwilling to risk a hostile return for Greenwood
Yet, he won’t be returning to his birthplace, Bradford, along with his new teammates this weekend. La Provence – cited by GFFN – states Greenwood has suffered a ‘muscle lesion’, which the club fears will aggravate if he features against the Black Cats.
However, it’s understood by the publication that his absence is actually due to concerns over a ‘complicated return’ to England – go figure. Marseille’s failure to qualify for any European competition last season means that he will be playing solely in France for the forthcoming term, but he can’t avoid that dreaded homecoming forever.
