Chris Smalling

Christopher Lloyd "Chris" Smalling (born 22 November 1989) is an English footballer who plays as a centre back for Manchester United and the England national team.

During his youth, Smalling played for the Millwall academy before joining local non-league side Maidstone United. He was selected for the Kent Schools Under 16 squad in 2005 before progressing to the Under 18's in 2007, and his performances for Kent Schools resulted in him being selected to play for the England Schools Under-18 squad in 2008. During this time Smalling had also established himself in the Maidstone United first team, and his impressive displays for club and country led to him signing a two year deal with Middlesbrough in May 2008.

Barely a month after signing for Middlesbrough however, Smalling had his contract with the club terminated after raising concerns with home sickness. Shortly after, in June 2008, he signed for Premier League side Fulham. He made his professional debut with them in May 2009 in the final game of the 2008–09 season and helped them reach the 2010 Europa League final the following season.

In January 2010, Smalling signed a pre-contract agreement with Manchester United and joined them officially on 1 July. He made his competitive debut in the 2010 Community Shield victory over Chelsea which earned him his first career medal. Since his debut, he has gone on to make more than 30 appearances for the club and established himself as first-choice backup to Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidić and has also become a contender for the right back position.

Smalling has represented England at various levels and is currently a member of the England senior squad. He played for the England Schools Under-18 team in early 2008 before making his debut for the Under-20 side and the Under-21 side in 2009. He made his debut for the England senior squad in the 3-0 win over Bulgaria on 2 September 2011.

Early life and Maidstone United

Born in Greenwich, London, Smalling started playing football at the age of nine for Walderslade Boys. After a short spell at Millwall's academy, a sixteen-year-old Smalling joined Maidstone United's youth set-up and continued his education at Chatham Grammar School for Boys.

After rising through Maidstone's youth and reserve team set-up under the tutelage of coaches Peter Nott and Tony Cornwell, Smalling made his first team debut for 'The Stones' on 11 April 2007 in a 4–1 loss against Tonbridge Angels in the Kent Senior Cup. After making further appearances in the FA Trophy and Isthmian League Cup, December 2007 saw Smalling made his league debut for the club playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 draw against Harlow Town. Smalling impressed and quickly established himself as a vital part of Maidstone's backline, however injury and international duty restricted him to making only 11 more appearances for the Kent side. Smalling scored one goal for Maidstone, netting in a 4–2 win at East Thurrock United on 24 March 2008, a game which was also his last for the club.

Fulham

After attracting strong interest from Fulham, Gillingham, Charlton Athletic and Reading, Smalling signed for Middlesbrough on a two-year deal on 30 April 2008. However soon after his contract with Boro was cancelled with Smalling concerned about homesickness, and in June 2008 he signed for Premier League side Fulham. Smalling was not on a contract at Maidstone (as it would have prohibited him from playing for England Schoolboys), and as such the Isthmian League club were not entitled to a fee for the player, however Fulham struck a deal which saw Maidstone given £10,000 upon the transfer and £10,000 for every ten league games he played. He was made captain of the club's Development Squad by manager Billy McKinlay.

On 24 May 2009, Smalling made his Premier League debut for Fulham, replacing Aaron Hughes in the 77th minute in the final game of the 2008–09 season in a 2–0 home loss to Everton Smalling made his first start for Fulham in on 17 September, in an away tie with CSKA Sofia in the UEFA Europa League with the match ending 1–1. On 28 December, Smalling made his first league start for Fulham, in a 2–1 loss against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in Fulham's final game of 2009 and scored a decisive own goal in the 75th minute of the match.

Manchester United

On 27 January 2010, Manchester United announced that they had signed Smalling, for an undisclosed fee, with the player staying at Fulham for the remainder of the 2009–10 season before joining United for the beginning 2010–11 campaign. The transfer officially went through on 1 July. He made his Manchester United debut in a 3–1 friendly win over Celtic on 16 July and conceded a penalty which led to Celtic's goal. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 friendly defeat against Chivas Guadalajara on 30 July, heading in a corner from Darron Gibson. Smalling scored his first goal of the 2011–12 season in the 2011 Community Shield against United's local rivals Manchester City, volleying home an Ashley Young free kick from close range to reduce the deficit to 2–1. Manchester United went on to win the game 3–2 and take the shield. The new season also saw Smalling adapt to a new role, as early injuries to Nemanja Vidić, Rio Ferdinand and Rafael allowed Smalling, Jonny Evans and new signing Phil Jones to replace them. Evans and Jones played as central defenders whereas Smalling was deployed as a right full back. Smalling scored his first ever Premier League goal against title rivals Chelsea at Old Trafford on the 18th September 2011, rising unmarked to place a header into the far corner to open the scoring, in a game United went on to win 3-1.

International career

England Youth Teams

At the age of 17 and studying for his A Levels, Smalling was selected to represent his county (Kent), and the Kent Schools' Football Association then nominated him for trials for the England Schoolboy international squad. His trial was successful, and Smalling was selected to represent England Schools against Australia in January 2008. England won 2-0, and Smalling went on to play for England in the Centenary Shield, playing all four matches which including 1–0 victory against Wales Schools in which he scored the only goal.

Smalling made his debut for the England Under–20 team 31 March 2009, playing 45 minutes in a 1–1 draw against Italy at Loftus Road. On 11 August, four months after his Under-20 debut, he made his debut for the Under–21 squad in a friendly fixture against the Netherlands, coming on as a substitute in the 58th minute of a 0–0 away draw. On 14 November, Smalling made first start for the Under-21's in a 2011 U21 European Championship qualifier against Portugal at Wembley Stadium in a 1–0 win. He scored his first goal for the Under–21's on 8 October 2010 against Romania in England's 2011 U21 European Championship play-off first leg, converting from inside the area after an assist from Danny Sturridge. The goal, scored in the 83rd minute, proved to be the winner as England won 2–1.

England Senior Team

On 13 November 2010, Smalling was called up to the England senior squad for the first time for their friendly against France on 17 November; however, he was an unused substitute in the 1–2 loss. He made his senior debut in the Euro 2012 qualifier against Bulgaria on 2 September 2011 in which he played at right back.