Is there some blessed light at the end of the tunnel, as far as the Mason Greenwood saga at Manchester United goes?
The Red Devils will be hoping so, for a number of reasons.
Not only would Mason Greenwood’s departure bring an end to one of the most unseemly stories in Manchester United’s recent history, it would also be a pretty superb piece of business both from a sporting and a financial perspective.
The manner in which Financial Fair Play is set out means clubs benefit greatly from selling homegrown talent for big sums. The £27 million Man United could earn by selling Greenwood to Marseille, then, would have a massive and wholly positive impact on the club’s coffers.
According to The Times, Man United and Marseille are nearing an agreement.
The Premier League giants could also include a substantial sell-on clause in Greenwood’s contract, guaranteeing them a further windfall should the forward leave the Stade Velodrome for an even larger fee later down the line.
Manchester United could sell Mason Greenwood to Marseille
And, for the first time on Tuesday, the Marseille bosses broke their silence on the Greenwood case.
While neither coach Roberto de Zerbi nor Pablo Longoria gave too much away with regards to the state of the negotiations, it appears that Marseille may be willing to play the role of a rehabilitator in Greenwood’s once oh-so-promising career.
“I don’t know his past, I don’t know exactly what happened,” De Zerbi begins, via Made in Foot, referring to Greenwood’s suspension by Man United back in January 2022.
“Honestly, I don’t like to get involved in the private lives of players. So there you go, I have nothing to say about it. The only thing I can tell you is that no matter the players, once they sign here, they become like my children. So I really protect them against all odds.
“Maybe behind the scenes, in private, I’ll pull their ears. But, in public, I’ll always protect them and I’ll always defend them as if they were my sons.”
Longoria struck a similar tone when quizzed himself on the Greenwood situation – amid some Marseille fans expressing displeasure over a move for the forward.
Ligue 1 giants break silence on Greenwood links
“I’m not going to talk about individual cases, because it would be a lack of respect for players under contract with clubs,” the president tells Made in Foot himself. “And that’s the case with Mason Greenwood.
“There are values that OM must convey. What is certain is that no matter which player comes to OM, he must share our values and the ones we want to have in common with society.
“For a year-and-a-half, we have set up one of the strongest social programs in Europe and it was a personal idea that OM be invested in all the subjects in which football has its place.
“In education, in women’s football, the work of the foundation. At OM, there is no religion, no social class.
“We want OM to be a vector of social unity and for all players to share this vision. We want people with values and good people.”
Marseille now look likely to win the race for the one-time England international.
Lazio had submitted a bid of their own, via Gianluca di Marzio. But president Claudio Lotito now appears ready to accept defeat after claiming that the Biancocelesti are now in pursuit of a player ‘ten times better’.