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Manchester United Players

United defender determined to justify praise

499DF371C4B2467E84EDE153CC519816Chris Smalling said he’s determined to justify the praise Wayne Rooney and Louis Van Gaal have heaped on him after some brilliant performances this season.

The England defender has been in fine form for United so far and has been singled out for praise by his manager and captain, with Rooney describing him as one of the best centre-backs in the world.

“Yeah, I did read that,” Smalling said.

“When you hear such good praise, especially from Wazza and the manager, you just want to show them that it’s not just words that are meaningless.

“He is a very experienced manager. He says a lot of things that I try to take on board and I think he wants you to express yourself and when he shows a trust in you I just want to repay it and do as well as I can. But, yeah, he has given me massive credit.”

Smalling added the improvements in his game were down to him finally getting a consistent run of matches under his belt in a relatively rare injury-free spell for the centre-back, who has been troubled by fitness issues in the past.

“I do think it is clicking,” he said.

“I knew when I did get a consistent run and I could build on something that I could go from height to height and at the moment I am getting confident and I am just looking forward to the next game, to putting down a marker and keep building.

“When I first joined, in that first year I had a good run and my form was good but then obviously being shifted around different positions, and having the injuries didn’t help, but in the last year of 18 months I have felt like that position is mine and hopefully I can make sure that the manager keeps picking me.”