Manchester United made a Mason Greenwood announcement earlier today. Well, actually, it was an announcement of the fact that they will make a Mason Greenwood announcement soon.
Seriously, this is what they actually did on Wednesday. The club had previously aimed to make a decision about the fate of the indefinitely suspended forward by the season opener.
Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur FYIs
Kick off: Sat. Aug 19, 5:30, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK
Team News: Tottenham Hotspur Manchester United
Starting XI Predictions: Tottenham Hotspur Manchester United
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Google Result Probability: Tottenham Hotspur 34% Manchester United 40% Draw 26%
PL Form, Position: Tottenham D, 1pt, 9th United W, 3pts, 7th
That came and went, and now MUFC has stated that they’ll announce a final decision on his status soon.
How and why are they botching this so badly?
Well, it turns out that a report in The Athletic emerged, claiming they already made up their mind about Greenwood; two weeks ago.
Spoiler alert: he’s being reinstated (unless the club decides to make a major U-turn), and the club didn’t want that getting out there before they had a chance to say it first.
Here is a Twitter thread from that reporter who broke the story explaining it all.
? Little thread on #mufc and Greenwood after today’s events, which may help people understand what happened. This is a bit industry-y but hopefully people appreciate the transparency
— Adam Crafton (@AdamCrafton_) August 16, 2023
I am so done with this story; on all levels. It is utterly ridiculous.
I am very inclined to believe the reporter, and not the team, especially given how United has been lying about the injury to Rasmus Hojlund.
It is likely that the Danish international’s back problem is much worse than Manchester United have led on. And I know, it must be greatly shocking to you all:
the unprecedented concept of a team lying about the severity of their players’ injuries (sarcasm font).
We won’t see Hojlund make his debut until after September international break, at earliest.
Ditto for Greenwood, as it’s going to take awhile for him to be re-integrated into the team, and to build up match fitness.
Also, Kobbie Mainoo (ankle), Tyrell Malacia (knee), Amad Diallo (knee) and Tom Heaton (calf) join Hojlund on the out due to injury list.
Finally, Harry Maguire had been set to transfer to West Ham, as a deal had been struck. However, Slab Head nixed it at the last minute because he wasn’t able to secure a payout from United to cover the gap in salary that would have come from his decreased wages in East London.
Harry Maguire is the new Phil Jones..
The legacy continues .. pic.twitter.com/P4ZuEZ6Os4
— ChrisHazeArts.eth / .tez #MUFC ?? (@PrinceChrisMUFC) August 15, 2023
Yes, you are right to call him the new Phil Jones.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.