Getafe coach Jose Bordalas has been forced to set the record straight after claiming that Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham had advised Mason Greenwood to join the club.
Greenwood is on loan with Getafe after Manchester United made the decision following an internal investigation and public pressure for him to continue his football career elsewhere.
The 21-year-old was arrested in January 2022 and later charged with attempted rape, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and controlling and coercive behaviour. Those charges were eventually dropped by prosecutors after the withdrawal of key witnesses, new evidence and no longer a realistic prospect of securing a conviction.
The move sparked immediate backlash in Spain when the Ana Bella Foundation, a domestic abuse charity in Spain, hit out: "If you're a public-facing organisation like Getafe there is no excuse to take a neutral stance on violence against women…you must take moral responsibility."
Getafe also courted further controversy when misleadingly describing Greenwood as "innocent".
In response to the backlash over his arrival, a statement to The Athletic from a spokesperson said: "We do not want to enter the investigation. This guy has been declared innocent, judged, he is innocent like you or me. The moment we see that he is innocent we have no more to say."
Although they were dropped, Greenwood was not cleared of the charges against him in a court of law.
Bordalas claimed ahead of the weekend that Bellingham, who has hit the ground running since moving to Real Madrid in June, had something to do with Greenwood ending up in Spain.
"Mason Greenwood is friends with Jude Bellingham, and he advised him to come to La Liga," the coach alleged, which has now turned out to be false. The Athletic has reported that Bellingham's camp was unhappy with what was said about the midfielder being involved.
Bordalas has now had to publicly backtrack: "I said that Greenwood came to Getafe because he had spoken with Bellingham. They have clarified to me that that was not the case. I apologise."
Greenwood made his debut for Getafe on Sunday as a late substitute in the 3-2 win over Osasuna, his first game in 20 months since his original arrest.
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This article was originally published on 90min as Getafe boss admits mistake over Mason Greenwood & Jude Bellingham comments.
