Manchester United told Crystal Palace there was 'no chance' they would be signing Mason Greenwood on loan this season.
Roy Hodgson has revealed his side enquired about the possibility of signing Greenwood on loan last summer, but saw their interest immediately rebuffed by United.
The 18-year-old has enjoyed an incredible breakthrough season at Old Trafford and has netted 16 goals across all competitions for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side.
Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are the only two players at the club to have netted more than Greenwood this season, and his form is of no surprise to the Crystal Palace manager.
Hodgson admits he always knew Greenwood would be a special player for the club and that he couldn't resist fielding the question to United last summer.
“Mason is a fantastic player," the Palace manager told reporters.
"We’ve known about him for a while and in actual fact I think we might even have enquired about him at the start of the season, if there was any chance of him coming out on loan.
“Of course you get the answer ‘no chance’ because they see him as one of theirs. But it wasn’t a difficult spot.
"I think people all over the Premier League have realised there is a real talent on the books of Manchester United and it’s been just a question of time before he gets his chance.
“It was the same with Marcus [Rashford], he didn’t have to wait either and they put him in early and, as a result, they find themselves with a young but very, very talented forward line.”
