Former Manchester United footballer Clayton Blackmore has apologised after being criticised on social media for asking Mason Greenwood to 'come home' to Old Trafford.

Greenwood, 25, played a pivotal role for Fenerbahce during their 3-2 victory over Manchester United's archrivals Liverpool in the Champions League on Wednesday, scoring the Turkish giants' first-half equaliser.

The English forward broke through the ranks as a youngster at Manchester United and looked destined to become a key long-term player, but his career spiralled after he was arrested and charged in 2022 with suspected attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault causing actual bodily harm.

Although those charges were subsequently dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service in February 2023, United decided Greenwood could not continue to ply his trade at Old Trafford after undertaking an internal six-month investigation.

Since his exit, which came after disgruntled Manchester United supporters groups heaped pressure on the club to cut ties with the forward, Greenwood has represented Spanish club Getafe on loan, French giants Marseille and Turkish side Fenerbahce, who he joined this summer for a reported €39million (£33.27million).

Blackmore, who played for Manchester United between 1982 and 1994, was met with backlash on Thursday after he heaped praise on Greenwood for his role in Fenerbahce's 3-2 win over Liverpool.

'Well done Mason Greenwood beating Liverpool. Come home to us please,' the Welshman, 62, posted on X.

Two hours later, after receiving a slew of disparaging comments on the platform, he said: 'Sorry I've offended anyone but I heard he had been cleared of any wrongdoing I apologise to everyone I've upset with my comments like I said I thought he had been cleared of everything and he’s had a baby with his girlfriend. Big sorry.'

Blackmore had previously come under fire for expressing his sadness that both Greenwood and Angel Gomes, another former English prodigy who was sold to Lille by Manchester United in 2020, no longer play for the club.

When the duo were both playing at Marseille last season, Blackmore said on X: 'Good to see Angel Gomez and Mason Greenwood score Marseille in first 26 mins. Sad they're not still at United.'

After landing himself in hot water with the post, he clarified to those commenting: 'Sorry I understand what you're saying but sometimes everything you hear is not always the truth why did his girlfriend stay with him I'm just looking at the football side.'

He later doubled down and wrote: 'Sorry didn't see or hear any of that I will do my home work next time just looking at it from the football side sorry if I've offended anyone especially his girlfriend and her family.'

While there was noisy resistance to Greenwood joining Marseille in the summer of 2025, he found no such opposition in Turkey, where one prominent journalist claimed 95 per cent of the population would not know or care about his past. 

He didn't face any questions about the dropped charges or his public image in his first press conference and outside of brief post-match comments, has not conducted any interviews of note. 

Greenwood has been hiding from the limelight a record signing would usually bask in, especially in the football-crazed city of Istanbul. 

He found a home in a district called Sarıyer, a favourite among footballers, who largely live in gated communities. 

Greenwood is said to count team-mates N'Golo Kante and Marco Asensio as neighbours and was seen in a rare online post after securing his new home, posing with the all-female team of estate agents who helped him with the purchase. 

Since the big-money move, Greenwood has only posted a handful of times on his Instagram profile, all of which were generic action shots after matches. 

His latest offering came after Fenerbahce's stunning win over Liverpool, as he posted a gallery of photographs celebrating in the club's yellow and black jersey.

His partner, Harriet, 26, is also selective with how much she shares from their new life. 

She only has four posts in total, with around 20 photos in each 'round-up', offering a glimpse into the high-life, though Greenwood himself only appears twice. 

One of the images is of him looking exhausted in hospital at the birth of their second daughter in 2023 and another shows him holding hands with their eldest, Summer, who is three.