Mason Greenwood appears set to return to the Manchester United squad before backlash leads to a dramatic change in tone
Tone Statement Manchester United, published last Wednesday, hardly sounded like a statement from the club, preparing to abandon Mason Greenwood.
Highlighting their «duty» to a player who has been at the club since he was seven years old and how their internal investigation into the allegations surrounding the 21-year-old striker was «based on extensive non-public domain evidence and context». United seemed to be laying the groundwork for a potential comeback.
Indeed, for several weeks all the roads seemed to point in that direction. Richard Arnold, United's chief executive, told the club's executives earlier this month that the intention was to bring Greenwood back. The plan for the announcement on August 4 was rumored to have been laid out, and there were even reports that he planned to record a video to explain his decision.
Officially, Arnold's actions were simply cited as one of the potential scenarios that are being modeled or «played out» to top management, even if it's hard to believe the club would have gone to such lengths if they were preparing to let Greenwood go.
Concluding on their own investigation that Greenwood did not commit the acts of which he was accused and that there was no reason to terminate his £75,000-a-week contract, United's senior management felt that there were reasonable grounds to try to reintegrate the player to the team. detachment. Eric ten Hag, manager, and director of football John Murtaugh were supposed to support this move.
Richard Arnold – The Man standing at the center of Mason Greenwood's decision. Photo: Getty Images/Oli Scharf
However, when the message from that club statement hit the inboxes of all United staff on Wednesday at 3:44 p.m., it ushered in a chaotic, whirlwind 72 hours in which the club's executives slowly backed away from plans to save Greenwood and began to get serious. rethink the situation. in the face of intense internal and external criticism.
Lessons from the Super League fiasco
By 11 p.m. last Friday, following the latest round of crisis talks among senior leadership that was convened in February after the Crown Prosecution Service announced that charges of attempted rape, assault resulting in bodily harm, and controlling and coercive behavior against Greenwood were removed, the turn was complete.
With United playing against Spurs on Saturday and there was no desire to divert attention from England's participation in the Women's World Cup final against Spain the next day, the official announcement was delayed until Monday noon.
This isn't the first time United have reversed course at the first glimpse of public outcry. Although the cases are very different, the fans have not forgotten how the club secretly planned to join the much derided European Super League in April 2021, but quickly backed down when the extent of the resistance became apparent.
Public backlash against Greenwood actually began to gain momentum over a few days before United's first game of the new Premier League season against Wolves on 14 August.
The Women Fans Against Greenwood Return cheerleading group issued a scathing statement three days earlier urging the club not to bring Greenwood back. On the same day, reports surfaced that United had postponed plans to announce a decision until the match against Wolves in order to consult with the women's team, three members of which — Mary Earps, Ella Thun and Katie Zelem — were absent from the Women's World Cup from England. .
Some of United's female players were suddenly the victims of social media abuse on the eve of England's quarter-final against Colombia, with Earps, Thun and Zelem petitioning to allow Greenwood's return. It was a grim event that added another layer of emotion to the protests outside Old Trafford that preceded Wolverhampton, where a banner in United colors was displayed reading: «Female fans don't demand Greenwood return — end violence against women.
Some Manchester United fans have been clear about the situation at Greenwood. Photo: Twitter
At this stage, the United management was still determined to keep working, but since last Wednesday the mood has changed markedly. The next morning, United's senior staff had to deal with angry employees, and these conversations continued even into the next day. Telegraph Sport spoke to numerous staff members who were strongly opposed to the idea of Greenwood's return. There were even reports that some employees were considering quitting or going on strike over the matter.
Others took a more restrained tone and admitted that they had not been privy to the information available to the executive committee led by Arnold, which includes chief operating officer Collette Roche, club legal counsel Patrick Stewart, director of public relations Ellie Norman and Murtaugh.< /p>Manchester United do not believe Greenwood was physically abused
During the five months of the investigation, the investigation team made considerable efforts to understand what happened between Greenwood and his alleged victim, and although the complainant did not interact directly with the club, it is assumed that her mother did so with the knowledge of her daughter. United are reportedly satisfied that Greenwood did not physically assault the alleged victim after being provided with explanations based on material posted online in January 2022 prior to the player's initial arrest, and that those explanations were not disputed by the complainant's family. Based on conversations with the alleged victim's mother, United are also satisfied that the alleged victim was not subjected to Greenwood's coercive control.
On Monday, Greenwood said he understands that «people will judge me» and «think the worst», and last week United certainly had no doubts about the strength of the feelings caused by this affair.
Arnold and the club began to receive emails from fans expressing their opposition to Greenwood's return. The protests soon grew louder and louder as domestic violence charities and members of parliament intervened. Women's Aid wrote directly to United to express their concerns and then took to Twitter to rebuke the club for explicitly labeling women's groups as potentially «hostile». criticism during script planning.
Andrew Western, Labor MP for Stretford and Urmston, criticized United's approach to the case. After Rachel Riley, Countdown presenter and United avid fan, said she would no longer support the club if Greenwood stayed, United even found the issue being discussed on BBC Newsnight.
Eventually, the pressure seemed to become too much for the club to take any longer.
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