28th of May, 2023. That was the last time Tyrell Malacia was seen on the field playing a competitive game for Manchester United.
Since then, it has been a mixture of conflicting injury updates, setbacks in recovery, false hopes, and a full season of absence for the Dutchman.
The latest on Tyrell Malacia from the club came all the way at the start of August when Erik ten Hag said his return to team training is close.
At that point, he gave a timeframe of about two months for his return and since then, there has been silence again.
Now, a video of Malacia training has emerged and fans can’t control their excitement.
Tyrell Malacia training video
Sightings of Tyrell Malacia have become somewhat of a rare quantity amid the conflicting reports on his progress.
Therefore, when one arrives, it immediately gains a lot of traction and coverage as fans look for even the slightest hints on what could happen next.
Malacia’s latest training video has now dropped, and the left-back can be seen finally training on grass, as he puts himself through the paces on a close-control course.
Hatim Timbelsi, probably the trainer with whom Malacia is working, posted a video of him training with the caption, “Getting closer to returning to the group”.
He is back training at Carrington but doing so away from the group which would presumably be the next step in his recovery process.
The video, a minute and seven seconds long, can be seen below as Malacia seems to be extremely careful of putting too much pressure on his leg while still looking comfortable with the ball:
Manchester United fans react to Tyrell Malacia video
Needless to say, just a glimpse of Malacia with the ball would have been enough to send fans into overdrive.
To get a video of him training with the ball at Carrington sent pulses racing, some in jest, while others threw their full support behind him as he stepped up his recovery.
On X, formerly known as Twitter, one said: “He kept himself fit during his injury. Hope to see him back soon!”.
Most fans were excited at the prospect of his potential return as one said: “Can’t wait to have him back” as another wrote: “Tears in my eyes, so good to have him back!”.
However, there were fans who expressed doubt at Malacia’s fluidity of movement in the video. One fan wrote: “Imagine how rusty you’d be after two years out” as another questioned his movement, saying: “Why is he moving like his boot weighs 200kg”.
Ultimately, United will be the ones who benefit the most if Malacia can return before the end of 2024 and become a capable backup option on the left.
The road still looks a bit long, but what’s the wait of two months if it has already gone for nearly 18!
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