Andreas Pereira has been struggling through the 2019/20 season much like every other member of the Manchester United squad.

Having made 18 starts and four substitute appearances in the Red Devils’ 25 Premier League matches to date, the Brazilian midfielder doesn’t have much to show for it.

His lone goal for the campaign came against Brighton in November, while the most recent of his three assists was during a 6-0 thumping away to Tranmere Rovers in the FA Cup.

Indicative of Pereira’s slow progress since becoming a first-team regular at Old Trafford last season, those figures are only slightly better than his return of one goal and one assist last term.

With no injuries reported, it seems another rather unusual issue might be to blame for the 24-year-old’s dull campaign.

According to The Sun, Pereira has struggled to sleep before long-distance away matches this season, both in the Premier League and Europa League.

His lack of involvement in the Europa League group stage suggests there was a significant issue at play.

Pereira made an eight-minute cameo against Partizan Belgrade in Serbia and sat out trips to Kazakhstan and the Netherlands to face FC Astana and AZ Alkmaar entirely.

When his inability to nod off started affecting away trips within the United Kingdom, the former PSV academy member sought the help of a hypnotherapist.

Hypnotherapy is a type of meditation which relaxes both the body and the mind in order to relieve any stress and anxiety during rest hours.

While it can take some time to yield any notable benefits, Pereira was reportedly cured in just four sessions and is now ready to get adequate rest before any fixture the rest of the season might throw at him.

Considering the nature of the problem, it’s remarkable that the Brazil international has made more appearances than any United player season, even if nine of his 33 outings came from the bench.

Regular football is no doubt invaluable for Pereira’s confidence, though he'll be itching to make a bigger contribution in the form of a few more goals and assists.

United's first game after the winter break is a trip to west London where they’ll face Chelsea on 17 February.