Tyrell Malacia is facing mental health challenges as he continues to be absent from Manchester United’s first team. The 24-year-old left-back has not played for the team since May of the previous year when he contributed to a crucial 2-1 victory over Fulham at Old Trafford. He was also unable to participate in any minutes during United’s pre-season tour in America due to an undisclosed injury.

This unexplained absence has persisted throughout the current season, creating a left-back crisis following Luke Shaw’s long-term injury at the end of August. Sergio Reguilon was brought in on loan from Tottenham Hotspur to address the gap, but he too suffered an injury shortly after joining the team. This unfortunate sequence of events has raised concerns about the left-back position at the club.

The decision to end Reguilon’s loan in January was based on the expectation that both Shaw and Malacia would soon return to the first-team squad, as indicated by the club’s medical team. However, this prediction did not come to fruition. Shaw did make a comeback in January, but Malacia has yet to rejoin first-team training.

During this time, Victor Lindelof and Sofyan Amrabat have been deployed as makeshift left-backs with unsatisfactory results. As a result, reports suggest that the club considers signing a new left-back a priority for the upcoming summer transfer window, indicating doubts about the availability of Shaw and Malacia for the next season.

While Shaw’s injury issues are well-known, the prolonged absence of Malacia has been a source of confusion. Many expected him to seize the opportunities presented by Shaw’s injuries, but he remains unavailable. In February, it was revealed that Malacia was close to making a return, but now Christopher Michel has shed light on the situation, stating that Malacia’s absence is not only due to a physical injury but also mental health struggles.

This revelation explains the guarded updates from the club regarding Malacia’s condition and the constant delays in his expected return. Mental health challenges present different complexities compared to physical injuries, making it difficult to predict a timeline for recovery and improvement in the situation.