Premier League club West Ham United were interested in signing Tyrell Malacia before Erik ten Hag’s insistence brought Manchester United onto the scene.
They finally ended up securing the services of the left back this summer.
Although the midfield was always the priority for the new manager, it did not prevent him from finding reinforcements on the left side of the defence.
Lisandro Martínez and Malacia were brought in and have settled in perfectly, changing the dynamic of the defense compared to last season.
Ten Hag has been an admirer of the Dutch left-back since witnessing his Eredivisie performances for Feyenoord.
Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column that West Ham were interested before signing Emerson from Chelsea.
Before signing Emerson Palmieri, West Ham tried to come in to sign Tyrell Malacia. They had direct contact with the player, but there was no agreement. #mufc [@FabrizioRomano, @caughtoffside]
— Management Utd (@ManagingUtd) September 7, 2022
“Before signing Emerson Palmieri, West Ham tried to come in to sign Tyrell Malacia. “
“They had direct contact with the player, but there was no agreement.”
It is clear that the Dutch international was in demand with various clubs interested in him. He came close to moving to Olympique Lyon, who had even agreed a fee with the Dutch club, before United hijacked the deal.
In recent weeks, Malacia has made the left-back position his own after a shaky start to the season from Luke Shaw.
The 23-year-old put in a great performance against Liverpool Mohammed Salah and has endeared himself to the Old Trafford faithful through his passion and hard work.
Ten Hag has always maintained that players will have a chance with him if they perform well and Shaw hopes to get more minutes to impress the Dutch coach.
United take on Real Sociedad in the Europa League on Thursday with an expected rotation after a busy start to the season.
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