Tottenham Rejects Mason Greenwood Signing Amid De Zerbi Controversy

Tottenham’s new era under Roberto De Zerbi is gathering pace in the transfer market – but one name will not be part of it.

Despite fresh links from France and beyond, Tottenham Hotspur have no interest in signing Mason Greenwood from Olympique de Marseille, football.london understands. The 24-year-old has been repeatedly mentioned as a possible returnee to the Premier League. Spurs are not biting.

That stance matters because of the man now in the dugout. De Zerbi knows Greenwood well. He built part of his Marseille attack around him last season and watched the forward produce the kind of numbers that usually turn heads in England.

Greenwood, under contract at the Orange Vélodrome until June 2029, played 45 times in all competitions for Marseille last term. Thirty-two of those appearances came while De Zerbi was still in charge. In that spell, Greenwood hit 22 goals and added eight assists, a prolific return that underlined why he remains such a divisive footballing talent.

Even after De Zerbi’s departure, Greenwood kept scoring. In the remaining 13 games of the campaign, the former Manchester United academy product added four more goals and three assists, rounding off a season that, on the pitch at least, looked like a resurgence.

Off the pitch, the picture is far more complex, especially in north London.

When De Zerbi was confirmed as Tottenham’s permanent successor to Igor Tudor, just two months after leaving Marseille, his past comments about Greenwood immediately resurfaced. The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust issued a pointed statement, warning that his appointment “raises serious and far-reaching concerns” among sections of the fanbase.

Those concerns stemmed from remarks De Zerbi made while working with Greenwood in France. The Italian had previously described Greenwood – who had charges, including attempted rape and assault, dropped in February 2023 – as a “good guy” who had paid a “heavy price”. He stressed that he did not want to get involved in Greenwood’s private life, focusing instead on the player he saw every day.

“All I can see is that Mason seems a good lad; he paid in a strong way for what happened,” De Zerbi said at the time. “He has probably here found the right environment for him, which gave him affection, and held out its hand to him.

“When I look at him as a person, I feel sad for what happened in his life, without getting into the details. Because the person I know here is very different to the one that has been described, especially in England.”

Those words travelled quickly. By the time Tottenham came calling, they were already lodged firmly in the public debate around his suitability for the job.

Spurs pressed ahead. De Zerbi signed a five-year contract and walked into a club eager for his high-tempo football, but also ready with hard questions about his stance on violence against women and the wider implications of his defence of Greenwood.

The new head coach did not duck the issue.

In his first interview with club media, De Zerbi moved to clarify his position and apologise for the impact of his earlier comments. “I have never wanted to downplay the issue of violence against women or violence against anyone more broadly,” he said. “In my life, I have always stood up for who are more vulnerable, more fragile. I have consistently fought and taken a stand to be on the side of those who are more at risk.

“Those of you who know me well will know I'm not the type of person who makes compromises to win more games or to win an extra title. I apologise to those who I offended with this subject matter.

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

The questions did not stop there. Ahead of his first game in charge of Tottenham, De Zerbi again faced the subject in front of the wider media. He described himself as “a bit sad and sorry it happened” and repeated that he regretted any offence caused.

“I must repeat what I said. This topic is very close to me. I'm very sensitive about this topic because of the person I am and because I have a daughter,” he told reporters. “And so I must repeat what I said the other time. I have always been against – always – any type of violence, especially against women. But not only violence, even just sexist jokes or other sexist behaviours.

“I have a daughter, and I'm directly affected by it. I know who I am. I know the type of person I am, so I wasn't annoyed by the questions – I'm just sad about them.”

Against that backdrop, the firm message that Tottenham are not pursuing Greenwood is more than a routine transfer denial. It draws a line.

De Zerbi may have worked closely with Greenwood and extracted elite numbers from him in Marseille. He may rate him as a footballer. Yet at Spurs, with the supporters’ trust already on alert and the club keen to project a clear set of values, the forward will not be part of the project.

Tottenham’s summer so far has been about building: an ambitious coach, early groundwork in the market, the promise of a sharper, more aggressive team. The Greenwood question hovered in the background as a potential flashpoint.

For now, Spurs have answered it with a simple, unequivocal “no”.