Manchester United drew a line under the Mason Greenwood saga with his sale to Marseille.
Mason Greenwood is no longer a Manchester United player, after he was sold to French side Marseille.
Greenwood was one of Manchester United’s most promising players prior to his arrest in January 2022. He was then suspended while the investigation was conducted.
Charges against Greenwood were withdrawn in February 2023, but he was not brought back into the Manchester United fold.
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Terms of Mason Greenwood exit
Manchester United told Mason Greenwood formally that there was no future for him at the club, in a meeting at Carrington at the start of July.
Options for his exit were discussed, with Manchester United and the player agreeing a sale to Marseille.
According to The Telegraph, Manchester United have inserted a buy-back clause into the deal.
This is described as now ‘standard’ when Manchester United sell an academy player.
Alvaro Fernandez’s sale to Benfica and Matej Kovar’s sale to Bayer Leverkusen are two recent instances of United also included a buy-back clause in their sales.
Nevertheless, the decision to do so with Greenwood is somewhat eyebrow-raising considering all that has occurred.
The Telegraph note: “There is no expectation or intention of Greenwood coming back in the future and that, if the clause does signify the door remains ajar for the player down the line, it is very much the slimmest of cracks. The prospect of it being activated is considered very low.”
A more positive clause in the deal is the 50 per cent sell on clause Manchester United negotiated with Marseille.
This could be potentially lucrative for United later down the line and provide a further financial boost to the money already received.
United have earned £23.3 million from the transfer, one of the Red Devils’ biggest sales of all-time, and there are a further £3.4 million of add-ons.
Greenwood and United look for new start
The move follows a successful loan at Spanish side Getafe last season for Mason Greenwood, where he scored 10 goals and provided six assists in 36 games.
He did this without a pre-season behind him, and no competitive football for 18 months prior.
Greenwood’s talent and ability is not in doubt, however, the accusations levelled against him, made it impossible for Manchester United to justify bringing him back.
The ‘very low’ possibility of Greenwood returning to Manchester United is worth noting – but hard to imagine actually happening.