Manchester United faced their worst injury nightmare last season and it is one that fans and the club alike would like to forget as soon as possible.
Perhaps no other player summed up that crisis better than Tyrell Malacia, whose timeframe for a return kept shifting forward with every new update that came out of the club.
Ultimately, the whole season was a write-off as United crawled from one game to another, most of those without a regular left-back, something which Erik ten Hag stressed a lot.
The hope was that the break between the seasons would help the whole squad refresh, Malacia included, and now a big update on his health has dropped as United reported for pre-season training on July 8.
Tyrell Malacia injury update
As the players reported for pre-season, fans saw a lot of United academy youngsters along with senior stars who aren’t at Copa America or Euros.
One name who was conspicuous by his absence was Malacia. Manchester Evening News’ Samuel Luckhurst reports that Malacia trained away from the squad as he continues his recovery from his knee injury.
Worse still, he added that there is still no timeframe for Malacia’s return to first-team training, a daunting prospect since it’s already been more than a year.
Add to that Luke Shaw’s precarious condition, and soon, United might be forced into strengthening the left-back area on priority along with other positions. A Miguel Gutierrez transfer would be ideal, but they would need to find the money to fund it from sales.
A decision needs to be made on Malacia
A lack of transparency around Malacia’s condition has added to a feeling of uneasiness surrounding the player among the fans. Whether he keeps suffering setbacks in his recovery, or there is an element of incompetence involved, neither alternative is very promising to think about.
He signed as an extremely capable backup option to Luke Shaw in a kind of deal United didn’t make often after Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure- a young, affordable squad player with potential to grow.
However, all of that has gone in the mud as Malacia, now entering the third season of his contract, has only managed around 2500 minutes of competitive action during his whole tenure.
More worryingly, he was never seen as an injury-prone player while at Feyenoord, so for the first big injury at United to cost him such a long time doesn’t reflect kindly on either the club or the player.
His contract expires in 2026 with an option for another year so perhaps the best course of action would be to give him this season and if no marked improvement is shown, be ruthless. United can activate the option to get his contract till 2027 and with increased leverage, look for buyers in 2025.
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