Manchester United appear to have learned from their Mason Greenwood blunder as a Roberto De Zerbi approach before the Italian took up the reins at Tottenham has been revealed.

De Zerbi has signed a five-year deal at Spurs which has been met with indignation from some quarters after the comments he made in defence of Greenwood after the Red Devils academy graduate signed for Marseille in the summer of 2024.

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Greenwood was charged with attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning bodily harm towards the same woman in 2022. He denied all wrongdoing and the charges were dropped in February 2023.

After moving to Marseille and shining on the pitch, De Zerbi described Greenwood as a “good guy” who had “paid a heavy price”, also suggesting that he?was the victim of the allegations.

Women of the Lane said De Zerbi’s comments raised “serious questions about judgement and leadership”.

The group, whose aim is to eradicate sexism and misogyny in football, said: “This is not an appointment Tottenham Hotspur should make.”

After launching the ‘no to De Zerbi’ campaign, Proud Lilywhites, Spurs’ official LGBTQ+ fans’ group, said: “When someone in that position publicly defends a player like Mason Greenwood, and frames it in a way that downplays the seriousness of what happened, it matters, not just in isolation but in what it signals.”

In his first interview after being appointed the new Spurs boss, speaking in Italian, rather than English, De Zerbi issued a half-apology.

“I have never wanted to downplay the issue of violence against women or violence against anyone more broadly,” De Zerbi said. “In my life I’ve always stood up for those who are more vulnerable, more fragile. I’ve consistently fought and taken a stand to be on the side of those who are most at risk.

“Those of you who know me well will know that I’m not the kind of person who makes compromises to win more games or to win an extra title.

“I have a daughter and I’m very sensitive to these things, and I always have been. I hope that over time people will get to know me better and will understand that at that moment I didn’t mean to take a stance.”

Manchester United narrowly avoided a PR disasterhaving tested the waters through revealing they were considering Greenwood’s return to the first team when charges against him were dropped by sending him out on loan to Getafe in in the summer of 2023 before accepting Marseille’s ￡26.6m bid for the academy graduate a year later.

And transfer expert Alex Crook has now revealed that the INEOS bosses have decided to steer well clear of further Greenwood controversy having given De Zerbi short shrift as the Italian “sounded out” a potential move to Old Trafford before accepting his position at Tottenham.

Crook said on talkSPORT: “Do you know what I find interesting about Michael Carrick? We’ve got to Easter Weekend and they’ve not spoken – as I understand – to any other candidates.

“That’s not to say Carrick has been interviewed for the job. I don’t think they’ll need to interview him. I think they either give it to him or they don’t.

“Speaking to people in Italy this morning, Jamie. They were telling me that Roberto De Zerbi – before taking the Tottenham job — sounded out Manchester United and was told he wasn’t in the reckoning there.”

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