Mason Greenwood denied England return for Marseille’s friendly against Sunderland | OneFootball

Former Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood was not part of Marseille’s squad to face Sunderland on Saturday, albeit for not a very straightforward reason, if reports are to be believed.

Roberto De Zerbi, who was heavily linked with the United job this summer, returned to England as the head coach of Olympique de Marseille over the weekend.

The Ligue 1 giants faced Championship outfit Sunderland, playing a 2-2 draw in a pre-season friendly at Valley Parade stadium. New signing Ismaël Koné stole the headlines by scoring on his debut.

However, Marseille’s other high-profile signing, Greenwood, was notably absent from the action in Yorkshire. He only scored his first goal for the club against Pau FC late in July.

The Englishman, who joined the French side in a deal reported to be worth £26.6 million, was left out of Marseille’s travelling squad altogether.

According to La Provence, the 22-year-old forward was not part of the squad as he had suffered a muscle injury.

De Zerbi supposedly did not want to take the risk of aggravating his new star forward’s injury, and accordingly decided not to take any risk for a pre-season friendly.

Even though Marseille suggested that his absence was due to an injury, the French publication claimed this could have been down to avoiding a complicated return to England.

Greenwood last played professional football in England against West Ham United in January of 2022. In the same month, he was suspended by United on suspicion of rape and assault.

Once criminal proceedings were dropped, Greenwood moved to Spain, with the Red Devils agreeing to loan him out to Getafe for a season.

As such, this would have been his first appearance on English soil since 2022. However, if the aforementioned source is to be believed, Marseille potentially did not want to attract all the noise concerning his return.

Greenwood’s signing was also not welcomed by every section of the Marseille fanbase. However, as far as his manager is concerned, the United academy product has his full backing.

Last month, the former Brighton and Hove Albion boss suggested he is not concerned about “private lives” and once a player signs for his club, he considers him as his “child” and vowed to support his players publicly.

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