Mason Greenwood

Mason Will John Greenwood (born 1 October 2001) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team.

Coming through the youth system, Greenwood made his first start for United in a UEFA Europa League match against Astana in September 2019, in which he scored becoming the club's youngest ever goalscorer in European competition at the age of 17 years, 353 days. His senior international debut for England came in September 2020, in a UEFA Nations League game against Iceland.

In January 2022, Greenwood was arrested for suspicion of raping and assaulting his girlfriend, for which United responded by suspending him "until further notice".

Club career

Manchester United

Early career

Greenwood joined Manchester United at the age of six, playing at the club's development school in Halifax. After progressing through the academy ranks, he joined up with the Under-18 squad for the 2017–18 season, despite being eligible for the Under-16s, and finished as top scorer of the U18 Premier League North with 17 goals in 21 games. In May 2018, Greenwood was named Player of the Tournament as the youth side won the ICGT Trophy in the Netherlands.

2018–19 season: Debut year

In July 2018, Greenwood travelled with the first team on their pre-season tour of the United States. On 20 July, he made his non-competitive debut as a 76th-minute substitute for Luke Shaw in a 1–1 draw against Club America. He also featured in a 0–0 draw with the San Jose Earthquakes three days later. On 2 October, Greenwood signed his first professional contract with the club. In December, he was selected by José Mourinho to train with the first team ahead of their UEFA Champions League match against Valencia.

On 6 March 2019, under the management of Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Greenwood made his competitive debut as an 87th-minute substitute for Ashley Young in a 3–1 win against Paris Saint Germain in the Champions League. At the age of 17 years and 156 days, he became the second youngest player to represent the club in a European competition (behind only Norman Whiteside) and the youngest ever in the Champions League era. Four days later, he made his Premier League debut from the bench in a 2–0 defeat to Arsenal to become one of the club's youngest league debutants.

On 7 May, Greenwood was named Premier League 2 Player of the Month for April. At the end of the season, Greenwood received the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award, given each year to the best player in the club's youth teams. On 12 May, the final day of the season, Greenwood made his first senior start for the club in a 2–0 defeat to Cardiff City.

2019–20 season: First team breakthrough

His first United goal came in their Europa League opener against Kazakh side Astana on 19 September; scoring the only goal of the game to become the club's youngest ever goalscorer in European competition at the age of 17 years, 353 days. On 7 November, Greenwood scored in United's 3–0 win over Partizan Belgrade, qualifying them for the knockout stages of the competition. On 24 November, Greenwood scored his first league goal in a 3–3 draw with Sheffield United. On 12 December, Greenwood scored a brace and won a penalty in the final game of the Europa League group stage against AZ Alkmaar. Manchester United won the game 4–0 and finished top of their group.

On 11 January 2020, after failing to score in 3 consecutive matches, Greenwood scored once in a 4–0 demolition of Norwich City. Fifteen days later, he scored his first FA Cup goal as United washed away Tranmere Rovers 6–0. Greenwood scored again four weeks later, in a 3–0 league win against Watford. On 12 March, he scored his fifth European goal during a 5–0 win over LASK of Austria; becoming the first teenager to score at least 5 goals in a single European season for United.

After a three-month suspension of football caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Greenwood has played in all six of United's matches as of 9 July 2020. He failed to score in the first three, but he delivered a total of four goals in the next three, including a brace in a 5–2 win against Bournemouth on 4 July. After that, he scored against Aston Villa; making him only the fourth player aged below 19 to score in three consecutive Premier League appearances and the first since Francis Jeffers did so for Everton in 1999.

2020–21 season: Number 11

After wearing the number 26 for his breakout season in 2019, Greenwood was given the number 11 shirt by Manchester United on 4 September 2020. He joined a famous list of players to wear the number 11, most notably Ryan Giggs, a fellow academy product who retired in 2014 as the leading appearance maker for United with 963. On 22 September, Greenwood scored his first goal of the season in a 3–1 away victory over Luton Town in the third round of the EFL Cup. On 28 October, Greenwood scored his first goal in the UEFA Champions League in a 5–0 win over RB Leipzig; the goal came from his first ever shot in the competition. On 5 December, he scored his first league goal of the season in a 3–1 away win against West Ham United.

On 24 January 2021, Greenwood scored his first FA Cup goal of the season in a 3–2 home win against arch rivals Liverpool in the fourth round. On 2 February, Greenwood played a full 90 minutes in Manchester United's Premier League record-equalling 9–0 home win against Southampton. On 4 April, he broke a four-month goal drought in the league, scoring the winner against Brighton & Hove Albion which ended 2–1 at home. Greenwood excelled in April with four league goals in four matches, including a brace against Burnley. This earnt him his first nomination for Premier League Player of the Month which was won by teammate Jesse Lingard who was on loan at West Ham. On 29 April, Greenwood scored his first goal in the UEFA Europa League for the season against Roma during the first leg of the semi-finals in a 6–2 home victory.

On 9 May, Greenwood continued his fine goalscoring form with a goal against Aston Villa in a 3–1 away win. Two days later, Greenwood scored against Leicester City, assisted by Amad Diallo, in a 2–1 defeat; the goal was the first time in 15 years a teenager assisted another for a Premier League goal. On 26 May, Greenwood played in his first cup final in the 2021 Europa League against Villarreal at the Stadion Gdańsk. Greenwood played 100 minutes before being substituted in the first period of extra time for Fred, the match was even at 1–1 before it went to penalties which ended 12–11 to Villareal.

2021–22 season

On 14 August 2021, Greenwood scored his first goal of the season in a 5–1 win over Leeds in Manchester United's opening match of the 2021–22 Premier League season. On 29 August, Greenwood scored the goal that secured a 1–0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers, becoming the second teenager in Premier League history after Robbie Fowler to score in each of his team's first three games of a season, and helped United breaking the record of most consecutive away matches undefeated in English football history with 28. On 8 December, Greenwood scored his first goal in the 2021–22 Champions League against BSC Young Boys in a 1–1 draw for interim manager Ralf Rangnick's first Champions League game with the club.

International career

Greenwood has represented the England under-17 team making six appearances in 2017–18 and was part of the squad in the Algarve Tournament in Portugal.

On 30 August 2019, Greenwood was included in the England under-21 squad for the first time and made his debut as a 59th-minute substitute during the 3–2 win against Turkey on 6 September 2019 in qualifying for the 2021 European Under-21 Championship. On 19 November 2019, Greenwood scored his first goal for the U21s; equalising against The Netherlands in a match which England ultimately lost 2–1.

On 25 August 2020, Greenwood was named in the England senior squad for the first time. He made his debut on 5 September in a 1–0 away win over Iceland in a 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A match, coming on as a 78th-minute substitute. On 7 September, Greenwood, along with England teammate Phil Foden, was withdrawn from the England squad after breaking coronavirus quarantine guidelines in Iceland.

Despite his strong start to the 2020–21 season where he had scored three goals in three games, Greenwood was not selected for the September 2021 World Cup Qualifiers for England by manager Gareth Southgate who stated, "He is in our thoughts, I've spoken with him and his club, he is a player we really like. We are all very conscious that he makes the progression at the right time."

Style of play

Greenwood began his career as a midfielder but gradually evolved into a centre forward. He often plays on the right flank for Manchester United, as well as moving more centrally to occupy as a second striker when the ball is fed into the penalty area. During his early career, several of his goals have seen him dropping a shoulder or chopping the ball to get it on to his left foot before scoring. He also often reverses his shot by aiming low for the near post from the right of the box.

In May 2018, former Manchester United player Clayton Blackmore said: "He's great on the ball and very good with both feet. He's the first person I've seen that takes penalties and free-kicks with his wrong foot. I've never come across anyone like that!" In March 2019, former academy coach Mark Senior said: "People says he's like the new Robin van Persie but I don't know. I think he's his own man. I've not seen another player like him. His style means his pace is deceptive because he is absolutely rapid."

In July 2019, Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær praised Greenwood during their pre-season tour, saying: "He can play all of the front-three positions, or across the front four, as he can play number 10, number seven, number 11 and number nine. He's a natural footballer with his left foot, coming in, but he's got two feet and can play anywhere along the front. He's just a natural. When he takes a penalty with his right, then takes a penalty with his left, free-kicks with his left, free-kicks with his right. He is almost what you'd call 50:50, maybe 51:49 left-footed."

Personal life

Greenwood was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, and raised in the Wibsey area of the city. He is of Jamaican descent. His family have a background in sports; his sister, Ashton, is a track athlete.

Rape and assault arrest

On 30 January 2022, Greenwood was accused of assault against his girlfriend, in a series of posts on her Instagram account, which included recorded audio clips and images. Later that day, he was suspended by United, and arrested at his home by Greater Manchester Police on suspicion of rape and assault.

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 22 January 2022

International

As of match played 5 September 2020

Honours

Manchester United

• UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2020–21

Individual

• Premier League 2 Player of the Month: April 2019
• Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year: 2018–19
• IFFHS Men's Youth (U20) World Team: 2021