He was released after the transfer window closed, so this raises some questions.
Why? If he's not under contract, he's a free agent. Doesn't matter when he was released.
Everything about this is exceptional circumstances.
I'm happy for Matty to get another chance but I don't see this as exceptional circumstances.
There is a worldwide pandemic that caused the league to stop for four months, doubts remain whether it will even be possible to complete the current season, and all the usual timeframes, including transfer windows and player contracts, have been thrown completely out of whack. If this isn't exceptional circumstances, then that very concept becomes meaningless and we may as well dispense with it.