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6 months ago
40 One of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s first orders of business this summer as Manchester United co-owner will be perhaps one of his more significant ones: making a decision on Mason Greenwood’s future.
After the INEOS chief’s minority stake was finally ratified in February following a lengthy wait, he began doing his first rounds of media duties in the hot seat – something fans have never seen the Glazers do in almost the entirety of their tumultuous reign.
As expected, Ratcliffe was quickly pressed on the matter of Greenwood, but did as most senior figures would do in that position and gave little away regarding his stance on the Carrington graduate, responding: “It’s a fresh decision. I can talk about the principle. I am not going to talk about Mason. I am familiar with it. The principle is the important one. We will have other issues going forward.”
There’s no doubt Ratcliffe will have been following the debacle that occurred surrounding Greenwood last year – ie. When the hierarchy’s plans to reintegrate him into the first team leaked and following a revolt of backlash from supporters, women’s charities, public figures and politicians, they U-turned and decided it was best he continue his career away from Old Trafford.
At the time, Greenwood hadn’t played a minute of competitive football since he was charged with attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in January 2022 – charges that were subsequently dropped in February 2023 after key witnesses withdrew their participation from the case and new material came to light.
The subsequent deadline day saw the forward shipped off to Spain to spend the term with Getafe, where he has since regained match fitness and form by notching 10 goals and six assists in 32 appearances across all competitions.
He has also found himself on the receiving end of chants telling him to die and calling him a rapist on numerous occasions, which is just another reason why his return would be so ill-advised, as English fans won’t be shy when it comes to making their feelings known to Greenwood. Parents are then likely to be faced with a sensitive predicament in explaining the situation to their children.
United put plans in place to sanction Greenwood’s exit
As per a fresh update from MailSport, a meeting was recently held with club staff in which they were told that offloading the 22-year-old is United’s ‘No.1 priority’.
Getafe will continue in their quest of tying down the loanee to another season, but the Reds may instead look to cash in and get him off the books for good.
Angel Torres, Getafe’s president, revealed to Spanish outlet Radio Marca that Barcelona had contacted them regarding Greenwood’s status and availability, however, Fabrizio Romano has since clarified that the Blaugrauna have no intention of igniting a pursuit of the striker.

