I have to admit the discourse on this topic is actually really painful, so I'm not sure why I waded back in. What I will say as a final point is my initial opinion at the time, was that with evidence that damming, the only reasonable assumption from then onwards was that he would be convicted. To my mind, if you have the "smoke and gun", then that will lead to a conviction. So I was quite happy to leave this in the hands of the police investigation and respect the outcome. I did maintain from the start that this would have been better played out directly in court so that a jury could weigh up a body of evidence, but alas that wasn't the case. However, what we do know is that based on the wide variety of evidence seen by the CPS (including in my opinion what looks to be a "smoke and gun"), they still didn't press charges. To me that makes me think they have seen something that makes him appear less guilty than what we all saw and heard. Utd's recent investigation has only added to my feeling that there's context we are not seeing currently in the public. I think where I take issue is those people coming down so strongly and definitively as if they have all the answers already, and vilifying him as if he was fully convicted of all those crimes. Even if you truly believe he's guilty, surely that slight twinge of doubt exists?
Yes and to be honest, I've changed my mind on this. The club made the right decision getting rid, because the circus alone would have been a massive distraction. However, I still can't shake the feeling that public pressure has played the biggest part in this decision, which I do find hugely frustrating.