Tough one, Smalling was an excellent defender with us. Lindelof and Bailly doesn't come close in terms of defensive ability. He was very strong physically, rarely beaten on the ground, dominant in the air, quick recovery pace and cleared a lot of set pieces. He was very good at sensing danger and coming across to cover for his partners. I think he is so complete that he'd form at least a decent partnership with any CB - Maguire would be no exception, and I thought he was one of the best CBs around when he was with us.
But we look on the verge of building something special without him, and I think a combination of him and Wan-Bissaka on the right side would be overkill, seeing their difficult techniques with the ball. He is over 30 now and is having success with another team in another league. I'd let him make his deal with Roma permanent if they want to, and stick with Bailly and Lindelof for a year if we don't have the means to bring in a new CB going into next season.
As for a Maguire-Smalling combo being good enough, I think it is if Smalling is still good. Maguire has significant weaknesses in turn of pace, speed and concentration, but Smalling could easily compensate for that if he's still got it.
But we look on the verge of building something special without him, and I think a combination of him and Wan-Bissaka on the right side would be overkill, seeing their difficult techniques with the ball. He is over 30 now and is having success with another team in another league. I'd let him make his deal with Roma permanent if they want to, and stick with Bailly and Lindelof for a year if we don't have the means to bring in a new CB going into next season.
As for a Maguire-Smalling combo being good enough, I think it is if Smalling is still good. Maguire has significant weaknesses in turn of pace, speed and concentration, but Smalling could easily compensate for that if he's still got it.