Mason Greenwood has been shown support by ex-Manchester United teammates Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot following his latest goal-scoring exploits for Marseille.
The 23-year-old has hit the ground running in France after sealing a £27million move from Old Trafford last summer and his success hasn’t gone unnoticed. United and Greenwood agreed to go their separate ways earlier this year amid controversy over the club’s reported plans to reintegrate him into Erik ten Hag’s team.
The academy graduate was away from the pitch for nearly two years following his arrest on charges of attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in January 2022. Greenwood denied all allegations, which were later dropped by the UK’s Crown Prosecution Service in February of the previous year because “a combination of the withdrawal of key witnesses and new material meant there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction.”
An internal probe led by ex-United CEO Richard Arnold was said to have paved the way for Greenwood’s return, according to The Athletic. However, faced with significant backlash, the Old Trafford club opted to send Greenwood on loan to Getafe in La Liga last season.
After impressing with 10 goals in 36 appearances in Spain, Greenwood made a permanent switch to Marseille before the current season began. And he’s enjoyed a blistering start at the Ligue 1 giants, netting 11 goals and chipping in with two assists in just 16 appearances, his latest strike coming on Sunday.
In Marseille’s 4-0 Coupe de France victory over Saint-Etienne, Greenwood was the first to score, followed by Adrien Rabiot, Luis Henrique and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg against the hosts who were down to 10 men. The striker later took to Instagram to celebrate the win with a post captioned: “Job done onto the next round.” The post that was liked by Fernandes and Dalot, as well as youngster Ethan Wheatley.
Greenwood has outscored all other United players this season, surpassing Alejandro Garnacho’s eight-goal tally in all competitions. United’s lacklustre performance in front of goal coincided with Greenwood’s cup heroics, as they suffered a 3-0 defeat to AFC Bournemouth at Old Trafford for the second consecutive season.
When Greenwood eventually leaves Marseille, United stand to benefit financially due to a sell-on clause included in his contract at the Stade Velodrome.