…Man Utd had little choice but to part ways with Mason Greenwood – the issue had become too public and too divisive
Reintegrating the striker back into the squad might have made sense from a sporting point of view, but would have been hard for many fans to forgive
It was the hardest decision Manchester United have had to make for a long time and they sure took their time making it. After much deliberation, they have finally made their call: Mason Greenwood is leaving the club.
It has been the elephant in the room ever since the striker was arrested in January 2022 in relation to images and audio released in a social media post. The post sent shivers down the spine of anyone who saw it.
“To everyone who wants to know what Mason Greenwood actually does to me,” read the post, accompanied by highly-distressing audio. There were also images of a woman, showing blood running from her lips down her neck and further images of bruising on her body.
Greenwood was arrested that evening and immediately suspended by United, albeit on full pay, barred from playing for the club or training until more information became available. It was the biggest story of that day and many people saw the images and listened to the audio.
In the eyes of many, both Manchester United fans, supporters of other teams and people with no interest in football, that should have been the end of Greenwood’s career with the club, there and then. Regardless of the legal ramifications, there was no way back for a player who had allegedly shown such disregard for the consent of the woman and allegedly assaulted her.
Unenviable decision to make
When all charges against Greenwood were dropped in February by the Crown Prosecution Service due to the withdrawal of key witnesses and the emergence of new evidence, United had an unenviable decision to make. There was no legal reason why they could not bring Greenwood back.
Before he was suspended, the striker looked to be on his way to becoming one of the best footballers in England. His talent and his proven record made him a potential asset to United on the pitch. They are ultimately a football team in a highly-competitive environment and these things matter to the people who run the club.
But to their millions of fans around the world, from Manchester to Malaysia, they represent far more. And Greenwood was already a stain on their image. For many United fans, some of whom GOAL have spoken to outside Old Trafford, this issue was a red line. If Greenwood returned, they would simply stop supporting the club.
A powerful statement from a group called Female Fans Against Greenwood’s Return summed up the feelings of many supporters, female and male alike. “The situation is clear – taking Greenwood back legitimises and normalises sexual assault and domestic abuse,” the statement read. “It tells other players, and the men and boys that look up to them, that abusing women is acceptable, without consequence, and won’t affect you or derail your career.
“It also tells us, as women, that we don’t matter. It tells female Manchester United employees that their employer is happy to make them work alongside an abuser, and tells hundreds of thousands of female fans that supporting the team we love involves supporting men who abuse women like us.”
Sign of disrespect to victims
Even though Greenwood no longer had any legal proceedings against him, in the eyes of many people, allowing him back would be a sign of disrespect to any victim of domestic abuse or sexual violence.
One in four women worldwide will have experienced domestic or sexual violence in their lifetime, according to a 2022 study by the Lancet Medical Journal. There are many male victims of sexual abuse too. According to Rape Crisis, one in 18 men in England and Wales have been raped or sexually assaulted as an adult.
Any victim of sexual assault would likely be triggered if Greenwood resumed playing for United. Many people would struggle to celebrate if he scored a goal. United would also, rightly or wrongly, be seen as a club that protects and forgives abusers.
Greenwood claims that he did not do the things he was accused of and United concluded in their statement “the material posted online did not provide a full picture and that Mason did not commit the offences in respect of which he was originally charged”.
However, Greenwood has never denied that he was the man in the audio and has not been able to offer an adequate explanation for it. He also admitted, “I fully accept I made mistakes in my relationship, and I take my share of responsibility for the situations which led to the social media post.”
Mason Greenwood Man UtdGetty Images
Audio easy to access and hard to ignore
That social media post will remain online forever, accessible to anyone with an internet connection. Anyone who sees the images or listens to the audio will not be able to forget them in a hurry and will make their own conclusions.
If Greenwood had been reintegrated, how would parents have explained to their United-supporting children why he had been absent for so long? How would they have reacted if, in a year or two, Greenwood had rebuilt his career and they wanted to get his name on their back of their shirt?
Footballers did not ask to be role models to children and the sport’s history, indeed United’s history, is full of characters who have not always acted as role models should, to put it lightly.
But most footballers are happy to accept the upsides of their status in the form of astronomic salaries. They must, therefore, accept the fact that they are held to a higher standard than workers in most industries. So must their clubs.
Open to questions of hypocrisy
On a cynical level, many footballers have been accused of crimes against women and been able to rebuild their careers. Down the line, United may have another uncomfortable decision to make about another player in their squad.
Antony, the £85-million ($108m) signing from Ajax, has been accused of domestic abuse by his ex-wife. She has previously filed a report in Brazil alleging that Antony had subjected her to “domestic violence, threat and bodily injury”, and according to media reports is set to file a report against him in England. Antony has always maintained his innocence and in June he released a statement on Instagram denying any wrongdoing.
Club legend Ryan Giggs was accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend, occasioning actual bodily harm, and of assaulting her sister in 2020. Giggs, who denied the charges against him, was summoned to court to face a trial in August 2022, when jurors failed to reach a verdict. He was due a retrial, but it was abandoned when the charges against him were withdrawn in July of this year.
Giggs remains an idol to fans and his name is still chanted at matches. So too is that of the late George Best, who admitted to beating his former wife, Alex. Best has a statue outside Old Trafford.
The stance United have taken with Greenwood could now lead to them confronting these issues. They will inevitably be accused of hypocrisy.
Too public, too divisive
Every case is different and fraught with complexity. But the Greenwood situation had become too toxic, too public, too divisive.
The club have made many poor sporting decisions in their history, signing many players who were not good enough, releasing others too early. They have always managed to bounce back.
But bringing Greenwood back was a decision that many fans would never have been able to forgive. It would have had far wider consequences off the pitch than any benefit the club could have got from keeping him, even if he had helped fire them to the Premier League title or the Champions League.
They have finally grasped that and taken the correct decision. This saga has been a traumatic ordeal for everyone concerned. The only positive is that, at last, the club can put it behind them.
(Goal.com)
