Manchester United footballer released on bail
Mason Greenwood, a Manchester United footballer, will be released from detention after a bail application was approved.
The 21-year-old forward is accused of rape, controlling and coercive behaviour, and assault.
On Monday, he appeared in Manchester Magistrates’ Court and was remanded in custody.
On Wednesday, a bail application was heard in private at Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court.
Following the hearing, a court spokeswoman stated that bail had been granted, with the terms that no communication with witnesses, including the complainant, be made and that the defendant reside at an address on Bow Green Road in Bowdon.
Greenwood did not appear in court for the brief hearing but is scheduled to appear again on Monday, November 21.
The three charges all pertain to the same woman.
The footballer was arrested for the first time in January on suspicions involving a young woman after photographs and videos were released online.
He had been on bail since, but was detained on Saturday in the Trafford region for an alleged breach of restrictions.
The controlling and coercive behaviour occurred between November 2018 and October of this year, during which time he is accused of making threatening and disparaging statements to the complainant, as well as accessing and monitoring her social media accounts.
The charge of assault resulting in actual bodily harm was filed in December 2021.
The forward, who has made one appearance for England, was prohibited from playing or training with the Old Trafford club within hours of the allegations appearing online at the start of the year.
Greenwood’s sponsorship relationship with Nike was suspended and then cancelled, while Electronic Arts verified his removal from active squads in its Fifa 22 game.
Cody Gakpo’s transfer comments
During the summer transfer window, Manchester United was extensively connected with a deal for PSV Eindhoven’s Cody Gakpo. With Cristiano Ronaldo’s future unknown, the club was assessing its alternatives in the transfer market.
A transfer did not occur, and Gakpo has continued to build on his already strong showing from last season. This season, the forward has 13 goals and 11 assists in all competitions, an output that only Erling Haaland can match.
He told The Times : “Manchester United talks ended about a week before the end of the transfer window… so in that final week, I had to decide if I would go to Southampton or Leeds. In the end I stayed at PSV, yes – but it was a stressful period.
“I was close to leaving PSV. I spoke to Erik ten Hag a few times at Manchester United, in the end, the deal didn’t go through… and it was a shame.”
