Manchester United’s official video game partner has intimated that the club is about to announce its decision to keep Mason Greenwood.
The Crown Prosecution Service dismissed allegations of attempted rape, engaging in controlling and coercive behavior, and assault causing actual bodily harm against Greenwood, 21, in February. Since then, United has conducted an internal inquiry and has discussed the possibility of Greenwood’s return with their football department, important stakeholders, and sponsors.
Despite the danger of fan protests, the club’s official video game partner, eFootball, has claimed that United executives may have already chosen to keep Greenwood. The popular game, created by the Japanese animation studio Konami, revealed the Red Devils’ squad list for their future release, which included the now-suspended forward.
Greenwood, who has a rating of 75, has not played or trained for United since January of last year. Following his arrest, eFootball creators decided to remove the 21-year-old’s name, avatar, and virtual player from their 2022 database.
However, Greenwood’s re-signing for their 2023 season has prompted some supporters to believe that his return to the field is imminent, but he could still be loaned out or sold before the transfer window ends on September 1. Despite being capped once by England, the striker was not assigned his No.11 shirt when the Red Devils published their tentative squad numbers ahead of the upcoming season.
“Others will start the season in their current numbers but with the possibility of change after the transfer window closes when it will be clear which other numbers in the squad are vacant,” the club stated on its website.
During United’s pre-season tour in the United States, Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag was asked to provide an update on Greenwood’s position, but he remained characteristically tight-lipped. “It’s a club decision,” Ten Hag said, after previously refusing to rule out the idea of the academy graduate, who is presently training alone and having his data analyzed by United, returning.
“Of course, I’ve expressed my thoughts and opinions, but it’s a club decision.” That is something we must all accept. I can’t say much about it, but I can say that I voiced my view on it, so let’s see what happens and what decision is made.”
Join our new WhatsApp group! To get your daily dose of Mirror Football content, click here. We also provide our community members with exclusive discounts, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can leave whenever you want. If you’re interested, please read our Privacy Notice.