Gary Neville condemns ‘pretty horrible’ Man Utd handling of Mason Greenwood case

Gary Neville believes independent panels should investigate serious allegations made against footballers after criticising Manchester United’s “pretty horrible” handling of the Mason Greenwood case.

United announced on Monday that Greenwood will leave the club by mutual agreement, with the forward suspended since January 2022 over allegations relating to a young woman after images and videos were posted online.

Charges against the 21-year-old England international including attempted rape and assault were discontinued by the Crown Prosecution Service in February this year, leading to United conducting an internal probe into the matter.

While Neville feels they have belatedly reached the right result, the former United captain is appalled at how his former employers have dealt with the situation and called for instances of this magnitude to be taken out of a club’s hands in future.

He said on Sky Sports: “They’ve finally got there. It was clear from day one, for me and anybody who saw the evidence that was initially released, that he wouldn’t play for Manchester United again.

“I would say that the process in getting there has been pretty horrible. When you have significant and difficult situations like this, it requires and authoritative leadership, that comes the very top and Manchester United don’t have that.

“On an issue like domestic abuse and violence against women, there needs to be independence. It shouldn’t be that Manchester United are the judge and jury on such a significant issue, not just for themselves but also for the game.

“People talk about the reputation (hit) to Manchester United but it’s the Premier League here as well.

“My view is on issues of this importance and severity (is) they should be dealt with