England icon Paul Gascoigne has endorsed former Manchester United striker Mason Greenwood to make a stunning return to the Premier League. Greenwood left Old Trafford for Marseille in a £27million transfer last summer and enjoyed a sensational debut season, scoring 22 goals for the Ligue 1 giants.
The 23-year-old finished as the French top flight’s top goalscorer alongside Paris Saint-Germain star Ousmane Dembele on 21 strikes. His impressive exploits in front of goal as a crucial fixture in Roberto De Zerbi’s side fired Marseille to Champions League qualification. In doing so, Greenwood has reportedly sparked interest among Premier League clubs this summer.
According to the Telegraph, the former England international, who has since pledged his allegiance to Jamaica, is privately pining for a return to English football.
And it’s claimed that at least two Premier League teams are weighing up an approach to bring him back to the competition.
Any return to the Premier League would spark a backlash, given the circumstances surrounding his United departure.
The Red Devils suspended Greenwood after he was arrested and later charged with attempted rape, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and controlling and coercive behaviour in October 2022 – all of which he denied.
In February 2023, the Crown Prosecution Service dropped the charges due to “the withdrawal of key witnesses and new material that came to light”.
Gascoigne represented Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Middlesbrough, Everton and Burnley in the English top flight.
And the 58-year-old has called on Premier League clubs to give Greenwood a chance despite his former controversies.
“If he went abroad and he’s more comfortable coming back and with the goals he’s scoring, then yeah, come back,” Gascoigne told Express Sport with pokerstrategy.com.
“I don’t know if he brings quite a bit of baggage. [But] if you’re going take a gamble on him, take a gamble on him. You have got to give him a chance, even if it’s just half a game.
“Sometimes, with these friendlies, you can play 11 [players] in one half and then the other 11 in the second half. Give the guy a chance.”
After United performed a U-turn on controversial plans to reintegrate Greenwood in the summer of 2023, he spent the 2023/24 season on loan at La Liga club Getafe.
The Bradford-born forward left permanently for France last summer, and he is expected to stay put for next season’s Champions League campaign.
But a concrete approach from one of United’s Premier League rivals could test Greenwood and Marseille’s resolve.
Content Source: www.express.co.uk