Pranav Kannan
Transfer News: Blow for Manchester United as Lyon agree deal for Tyrell Malacia
According to popular Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano (h/t Manchester Evening News), Manchester United have been handed a transfer blow with left-back target Tyrell Malacia closing in on a move to Ligue1 giants Lyon, with a €15million agreement already in place.
Manchester United have been interested in bringing the talented Dutch defender to Old Trafford this summer. Highly rated during his time at Feyenoord, Malacia’s performances have not gone unnoticed with clubs interested in securing the Dutchman’s services.
A product of Feyenoord’s youth system, Malacia made his breakthrough into the first team in 2017 at a very young age of 17 and has since then gone on to have a good five-year stint with the club. His performances have earned him the tag ‘pitbull‘ due to his aggressive nature.
The 22-year-old has played 50 times for the Eredivisie team this season scoring one goal and providing five assists across all competitions. Despite interest from a club of Man United’s stature, the player is apparently keen on a move to Lyon to work under Dutch boss Mosz.
Malacia could be yet another addition to the list of targets Manchester United have failed to secure this season, eventually losing out to other clubs. Erik ten Hag’s rebuild at Old Trafford is not going to be easy by any means if this continues to be the case.
The full-back position is an area where Man United aren’t necessarily understocked but could do with a reshuffle in the pack. Brandon Williams is expected to return from his loan spell with Norwich but it seems unlikely that he becomes a regular starter for us after having a modest time at Carrow Road.
Alex Telles was signed with huge expectations from Porto but he has failed to dethrone Luke Shaw from his position at left-back and is struggling to recapture the kind of form he showed in Liga Nos. Luke Shaw, to his credit, has had a decent couple of seasons and could continue to be our left-back.
One problem with the Englishman though is that he often tends to be injured and in such scenarios, having a solid replacement is a necessity for Man United. Whilst Alex Telles can do that role to good effect, replacing him with a player of Malacia’s quality would have been a smart move for the future.
Let’s not forget that ten Hag must have had a good look at the player during his time in Holland. However, even if we don’t sign a player for that position, it might not be a huge issue going into next season. We must also not forget Alvaro Fernandez.
The U-23 Manchester United player is touted to be the next big thing coming out of the academy and he could be trusted to do a role as a backup to one of our senior left-backs some years down the line.
More Manchester United News
- Transfer News: Lyon ahead of Manchester United in Tyrell Malacia race
- Transfer News: Manchester United really interested in signing Ajax winger Antony
- Manchester United target Christopher Nkunku extends his contract at RB Leipzig
A huge summer awaits Erik ten Hag and Manchester United. Until now, they have not been able to do any meaningful business. Let’s hope the situation changes soon and we start bringing in reinforcements for next season.
