With Leny Yoro on route from France to Manchester to complete his medical assessment ahead of joining Old Trafford, Mason Greenwood is going the other way for a medical at Marseille.
The Ligue 1 side have been in pursuit of the winger, trying to overcome obstacles to bring the 22-year-old to the club.
Whilst Greenwood has been the subject of interest from teams like Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, Lazio and Fenerbahce, a number of teams have been quite about their desire to sign the England international.
The hesitation of some clubs comes from the controversial nature of Greenwood’s suspension while at United. The 22-year-old was charged for attempted rape, assault and controlling and coercive behaviour. Whilst the Crown Prosecution Service dropped all charges, some teams are nervous to announce their interest in the United academy graduate through fears of fan reactions.
Marseille have unfortunately found this out the hard way, with the mayor, Benoît Payan, putting up strong residence to the move.
Speaking in an interview, Payan commented: “Greenwood’s behavior is unspeakable, unacceptable. Hitting his wife… I saw images that deeply shocked me. Attacking his wife in this way is unworthy of a man and I believe he cannot have a place in this team.”
He continued: “The values of Marseille and the values of Olympique de Marseille are anything but that. It’s anything but racism, anti-Semitism. It’s anything but… can you imagine, violence against women? Do you realise that? And he claims to play for Olympique de Marseille, Greenwood? It’s a disgrace.
“I will ask the president of Olympique de Marseille not to recruit Greenwood. I don’t want my club to be covered in the shame of someone who hits his wife. I don’t want my club to be covered in the ashes of someone who hits his wife like that. It’s not acceptable.”
However, journalist Sebastien Denis has reported that the Mayor has seemingly failed to block the transfer, with Greenwood on his was to Marseille in the coming hours to undergo a medical assessment before signing a five year contract with the club.
Now, Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that the deal is in fact going ahead with United receiving €30 million for the winger plus 50% of any future sale.
If the assessment goes well and Greenwood puts pen to paper, it will mark the first sale of the summer for United, starting off Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s cull of players in order to generate transfer funds for the major squad rebuild which will be taking place over the next three years.
