Mason Greenwood‘s red card from Getafe’s fiery 2-0 defeat by Rayo Vallecano has been rescinded by the Spanish FA.
The on-loan Man United star had been given his marching orders for dissent after tensions boiled over during Tuesday’s home loss, with Juanmi Latasa and Damian Suarez also given red cards.
Getafe were reportedly set to appeal the red shown to Greenwood, however, after believing he had not been venting his frustrations at Jorge Figueroa Vasquez. The player was insistent he said ‘f*** sake!’ rather than ‘f*** you!’ as claimed by the match official.
Now the Spanish FA have overturned the decision after finding that Greenwood had in fact sworn over the amount of times he had been fouled, rather than aiming a deliberate X-rated remark directly at Vasquez.
‘The task of this disciplinary body is not to re-referee the matches, without determining, where appropriate, the existence of a manifest material error in the referee’s description of the action,’ the Spanish FA said.
The Spanish FA found Mason Greenwood was venting his frustrations at being fouled rather than swearing directly at the match official
Greenwood was dismissed during Getafe’s 2-0 home defeat by Rayo Vallecano on Tuesday
Greenwood is believed to have said ‘f*** sake’ rather than ‘f*** you’ after chiefs determined there was no deliberate offence
‘As has been said here, only proof of an error of this type can distort the assessment made by the referee and, consequently, the veracity of what was recorded in the minutes.
‘The repeated viewing of the images, in fact, has allowed this Committee to conclude, beyond any doubt, that the action that led to the expulsion did not occur as described by the referee and, ultimately, prove the material error manifest in the referee’s report.
‘These images demonstrate that the player actually said ‘One, two, three, four, f***.’
Greenwood had been facing a ban of up to four games had his red card been upheld by Spanish football chiefs.
Vasquez had initially claimed in his post-match report claims that the United loanee swore at him while giving his reasons for the dismissal.
The official’s post-match report reads: ‘In the 50th minute the player (12) Greenwood, Mason Will John, was sent off for the following reason: For addressing me in a sign of protest and raising his arm, in the following terms: “F*** you”.
Greenwood has scored five goals and assisted four more in all competitions since joining Getafe on loan
‘Once sent off, he takes the finger to the temple making a repeated gesture as a sign of disagreement with the decision made.’
Getafe boss Jose Bordalas added after the match that he had spoken to his charge, who told a different story in protesting his innocence.
‘The player told me that he said “don’t f*** with me”, only that,’ Bordalas said.
‘It was in frustration but at no point has he insulted anybody.
‘It was a comment, “don’t f*** with me, why won’t you blow (the whistle).”
Greenwood’s spell in Spain has not been ground-breaking, but he has still performed well, scoring five goals in 15 games across all competitions.
He has also provided four assists, with his performances seeing him linked with a permanent move to Getafe at the end of his loan.
The eighth-placed outfit in LaLiga might face competition from Barcelona, though, with the Spanish giants reportedly prepared to offer the English forward the No 10 shirt to sweeten a deal that could reach as much as £40million.
The former England international is currently on-loan in Spain after it was decided he would play no part in Manchester United‘s immediate future following an internal investigation.
This came after criminal allegations against him for attempted rape, assault and coercive control were dropped. The 22-year-old denied all the charges.