Mason Greenwood dropped by England amid rape, assault allegations

The problems continue to pile up for Manchester United striker Mason Greenwood, who now sees his international career in jeopardy. The footballer was released on bail last week, but the allegations of rape, physical assault and threats to kill continue to haunt him.

Greenwood was arrested on Sunday last week and spent three days in police custody before being released on Wednesday. He is under investigation for allegations made online by a woman named Harriet Robson, who is believed to have been his girlfriend. In light of the allegations made against him, England manager Gareth Southgate has reportedly shut the door for the player's involvement with the national team in the near future.

According to a report by Marca, Greenwood has already been made aware that Southgate is not including him in his plans. The situation is unfortunate, with the FIFA World Cup 2022 coming up at the end of the year.

The Three Lions are already qualified to make the trip to Qatar, but Greenwood won't be joining them unless he somehow manages to resolve his legal issues in the next few months. Furthermore, even if the case is settled out of court or resolved in a similar manner, it may still be an issue both for England and Manchester United if he is not exonerated outright.

The legal issue is just the latest matter to cause friction between Southgate and the 20-year-old. Greenwood was called up to join the squad for the first time in September 2020, at the height of the first wave of the novel coronavirus pandemic. He made his debut for the national team, but was summarily sent back home with Manchester City player Phil Foden after they were found to have been in breach of safety protocols.

The two players were caught interacting with women who were not part of the team bubble at the time. Photographic evidence showed the players with the women in and around the squad's hotel in Iceland.

Now, Greenwood is facing a bigger issue that again involves a woman. Robson took to social media last week to show off photos of her bruised and battered body, and accused the United forward of rape, assault and sending her death threats.

Football fans are not happy about the allegations, and Greenwood found the need to reinforce security at his Cheshire home. He has reportedly been at the receiving end of threats in the past week, forcing him to hire security guards and install a video surveillance system.