- Tyrell Malacia last played for Man United in the final game of the 2022-23 season
- He has spent the last 18 months sidelined by a string of injury and fitness issues
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Tyrell Malacia completed a 45-minute comeback for Manchester United’s Under-21s in his first appearance for the club in almost 18 months.
The 25-year-old started at left back for Travis Binnion’s side and watched on by technical director Jason Wilcox, he came through unscathed to boost his hopes of featuring in Ruben Amorim’s first game at Ipswich in 12 days time.
Malacia arrived with a big smile on his face and it is no surprise given the torment of his gruelling rehabilitation process, which has featured two operations.
In a bid to celebrate Malacia’s progress, four members of United’s first team medical team – Ibrahim Kerem, David Billingsley, Jordan Reece, and Alan Watmough – travelled to Huddersfield to support the Dutchman.
He looked bright in the early stages, offering regular dialogue to Ethan Williams at left wing and to manager Travis Binnion.
Tyrell Malacia completed a 45-minute comeback for Manchester United’s Under-21s in his first appearance for the club in almost 18 months
The 25-year-old (No 12) started at left back for Travis Binnion’s side on Tuesday evening
He returned to first-team training back in September and is set to link up with the U21s
Malacia showed no signs of discomfort as he got forward at will and this next step in his development will be welcome news to Amorim, who will be kept in the loop in the coming days on how the academy side fared.
Malacia was taken off at half-time in a pre-planned change in place of Harry Amass but with his entourage in attendance it was a positive night and a big stride forward in his development.
It’s been a long road back given that he has not played since featuring for United in the final game of the 2022-23 season, where he lasted 90 minutes in a 2-1 win over Fulham at Old Trafford.
The left back returned to team training in September and the club have been keen to ease him back in so as not to risk re-aggravation of a knee problem.
Malacia’s absence has been as frustrating for him as it has been for coaches, with his expected return at the start of the year the reason why Sergio Reguilon’s loan was cut short by Erik ten Hag.
Malacia arrived from Feyenoord in July 2022 on a four-year deal for £12.9m, with the potential of a further £1.2m in add-ons.
In his first season at the club he made 39 appearances, filling in for Luke Shaw, but a persistent knee issue has sidelined him ever since.
He initially had surgery but it did not go as planned and it has been a particularly difficult rehab for the Dutchman having had a second operation.
Malacia (No 12) has not featured for United’s first-team since the final game of 2022-23
‘It was really tough to see him and the struggle that he’s been through,’ team-mate Diogo Dalot said earlier this season of Malacia upon his return to training.
‘You can’t imagine how difficult it would be to not be able to do what you love, your job, for such a long time.
‘That’s why we celebrated when he came on training with us, even if it was just for the little boxes… to make sure that he feels we are ready to welcome him and to keep helping him, because he’s going to need it.
‘At the end of the day, it was a really long time since he got an injury. We’re really pleased to have him. The team needs him and the club needs him, so we are really happy.’
