Seen a lot of people suggest we should keep him. Premier league proven, suitable partner for Maguire or Lindelof and arguably our best defender but can't play out from the back. Keep or sell?
So would you keep Smalling?
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LuisNaniencia
Sky Sports called my bluff
Would much rather him than Lindelof.
Judas
Open to offers
He's far better than Lindelof obviously, but at this point no, we need to be moving forward not backwards.
ClaytonBlackmoorLeftPeg
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He’s not the second coming of Bobby Moore, However he’s better than Lindelof, Bailly, Jones and Rojo.Sell and don’t even think about it.
Poor at passing, okay but not great at defending, and hasn’t set the world in fire while at Roma. He is not the solution to anything.
He’s not better than Lindelof which is why he was loaned.He’s not the second coming of Bobby Moore, However he’s better than Lindelof, Bailly, Jones and Rojo.
My dead grandma is better than Jones and Rojo, and as available to play as those two and Bailly.
He is better defensively but let's be honest here he can't control a football to save his life. Lindelöf his miles ahead of him there.He's far better than Lindelof obviously, but at this point no, we need to be moving forward not backwards.
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When I think of any CB it's easy to see their strengths.
Maguire - Very good header of the ball and he is good at carrying the ball forward. Strong physically too.
Smalling - Very good header of the ball and he is good defensively. Very strong physically and he has good pace.
Bailly - He has excellent pace, strength, good ground defending, aggressive but he is very injury prone which means he won't get run of games.
Lindelof - No idea. He isn't strong, poor in the air, he isn't aggressive, very passive. It's not as if his ball playing skills are like Blind's to accommodate him. With benefit of hindsight, Ole got this one very wrong. Smalling has made mistakes too at Roma but IMO he would be better than Lindelof for us.
Maguire - Very good header of the ball and he is good at carrying the ball forward. Strong physically too.
Smalling - Very good header of the ball and he is good defensively. Very strong physically and he has good pace.
Bailly - He has excellent pace, strength, good ground defending, aggressive but he is very injury prone which means he won't get run of games.
Lindelof - No idea. He isn't strong, poor in the air, he isn't aggressive, very passive. It's not as if his ball playing skills are like Blind's to accommodate him. With benefit of hindsight, Ole got this one very wrong. Smalling has made mistakes too at Roma but IMO he would be better than Lindelof for us.
Judas
Open to offers
Might be old school but I want my defenders to be good at defending first over ball control, Lindelof is just an embarrassment.He is better defensively but let's be honest here he can't control a football to save his life. Lindelöf his miles ahead of him there.
fps
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No, he’s just not a winner.
LuisNaniencia
Sky Sports called my bluff
I agree, but personally I would trade Lindelof's ball playing for a better defender. Even with Lindelof, we are still shit at playing out and too many goals come from his poor defending.He is better defensively but let's be honest here he can't control a football to save his life. Lindelöf his miles ahead of him there.
I'm not a fan of Lindelöf either but the way Ole sets us up, playing it out from the back, Smalling is just a disaster waiting to happenMight be old school but I want my defenders to be good at defending first over ball control, Lindelof is just an embarrassment.
While I dont think he's the solution neither, it has to be said that he has actually performed really well at Roma. Let's not start a narrative that he hasn't.Sell and don’t even think about it.
Poor at passing, okay but not great at defending, and hasn’t set the world in fire while at Roma. He is not the solution to anything.
Havak
Pokemon master
Still think he's better than everyone we have bar Maguire. But there is some misconception with his loan and the club 'keeping' him.
He wants first-team football. ie. To partner Maguire every week unless there is a reason he shouldn't (Fitness, being rested, tactical, whatever it may be). Ole has said that he cannot promise that, so Smalling himself chose to leave. I am not sure anything will have changed in that regard, unless Ole has been impressed with Smalling's loan spell like a lot of people have.
However, if we're signing a CB in the Summer then this discussion is a non-starter, as I assume any CB we sign is going to be in the hope that they are first choice with Harry. If Smalling comes back and is first choice with Maguire then it's for a combination of two reasons.
1) We haven't been able to sign the CB we want.
2) Ole/the board has been impressed enough with his loan that they want to give him that season beside Maguire.
He wants first-team football. ie. To partner Maguire every week unless there is a reason he shouldn't (Fitness, being rested, tactical, whatever it may be). Ole has said that he cannot promise that, so Smalling himself chose to leave. I am not sure anything will have changed in that regard, unless Ole has been impressed with Smalling's loan spell like a lot of people have.
However, if we're signing a CB in the Summer then this discussion is a non-starter, as I assume any CB we sign is going to be in the hope that they are first choice with Harry. If Smalling comes back and is first choice with Maguire then it's for a combination of two reasons.
1) We haven't been able to sign the CB we want.
2) Ole/the board has been impressed enough with his loan that they want to give him that season beside Maguire.
AngeloHenriquez
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You say Ole got this one wrong but you know Jose signed him right?When I think of any CB it's easy to see their strengths.
Maguire - Very good header of the ball and he is good at carrying the ball forward. Strong physically too.
Smalling - Very good header of the ball and he is good defensively. Very strong physically and he has good pace.
Bailly - He has excellent pace, strength, good ground defending, aggressive but he is very injury prone which means he won't get run of games.
Lindelof - No idea. He isn't strong, poor in the air, he isn't aggressive, very passive. It's not as if his ball playing skills are like Blind's to accommodate him. With benefit of hindsight, Ole got this one very wrong. Smalling has made mistakes too at Roma but IMO he would be better than Lindelof for us.
From all accounts he had a pretty good half of the season, followed by a meh second half.While I dont think he's the solution neither, it has to be said that he has actually performed really well at Roma. Let's not start a narrative that he hasn't.
Roma is also quite shit. Anyway, he is 30, had infinite chances here, and was never that good. Time to move on. Of course he is gonna be a new Danny Welbeck here, every time someone will feck up, he will be brought in discussion.
AngeloHenriquez
Full Member
Lazy, that's not why he was loaned at all, he wanted to be promised minutes and wasn't, he asked to go on loan; it's widely documented.He’s not better than Lindelof which is why he was loaned.
My dead grandma is better than Jones and Rojo, and as available to play as those two and Bailly.
I think Ole would prefer to have kept him and your earlier post that he hasn't set the world alight at Roma is wrong, he has been very good.
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I said going with Maguire + Lindelof was wrong and that was with benefit of hindsight.You say Ole got this one wrong but you know Jose signed him right?
AngeloHenriquez
Full Member
Agreed, Bailly is the biggest disappointment as he has it all for me but is probably more injury prone than Jones.I said going with Maguire + Lindelof was wrong and that was with benefit of hindsight.
He was loaned cause Ole couldn’t offer him a first-team status. Guess who plays on that position.Lazy, that's not why he was loaned at all, he wanted to be promised minutes and wasn't, he asked to go on loan; it's widely documented.
I think Ole would prefer to have kept him and your earlier post that he hasn't set the world alight at Roma is wrong, he has been very good.
From all accounts (my brother who is a Roma fan and watched them every match, and the Caf here) he had a good start but he has not been that good since Christmas or so. In any case, it is fecking Roma. They’re mediocre as feck.
Champagne Football
New Member
He's not a Man Utd player. He's same level as Lingard or Tom Cleverley. He can go through spells where he's solid enough, but he simply doesn't have what it takes to be at Man Utd.
He's an Everton or Crystal Palace level defender. He's not an upgrade on Lindelof or Tuanzebe.
He's an Everton or Crystal Palace level defender. He's not an upgrade on Lindelof or Tuanzebe.
AngeloHenriquez
Full Member
Lindelof didn't need the same assurances (perhaps more confident, who knows?) Either way we can't say Smalling going on loan is a direct result of Ole favouring LindelofHe was loaned cause Ole couldn’t offer him a first-team status. Guess who plays on that position.
That's odd in truth as Koulibaly who many accept would be a definite upgrade has a rating of 6.77 on who scored in Serie A this season whereas Smalling has a 6.96 rating and lacked the previous experience with the team that Koulibaly would have had. In fact only Godin has outperformed him in Serie A at CB this year...From all accounts (my brother who is a Roma fan and watched them every match, and the Caf here) he had a good start but he has not been that good since Christmas or so. In any case, it is fecking Roma. They’re mediocre as feck.
tenpoless
No 6-pack, just 2Pac
Smailling is a good defender and the best partner for Maguire compared to other CBs we've got.
But Smailling is enjoying life at Roma and I think it is imminent that Smailling will be their permanent player and probably will stay there till he retires.
But Smailling is enjoying life at Roma and I think it is imminent that Smailling will be their permanent player and probably will stay there till he retires.
I thought that everyone who watches Serie A said that Koulibaly has been quite mediocre this season, so this does not surprise me that much.Lindelof didn't need the same assurances (perhaps more confident, who knows?) Either way we can't say Smalling going on loan is a direct result of Ole favouring Lindelof
That's odd in truth as Koulibaly who many accept would be a definite upgrade has a rating of 6.77 on who scored in Serie A this season whereas Smalling has a 6.96 rating and lacked the previous experience with the team that Koulibaly would have had. In fact only Godin has outperformed him in Serie A at CB this year...
And despite I am an ML expert, I never was a fan of these statistical average ratings. I also thought that Godin hasn’t been particularly great.
flappyjay
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Bailly definitely has the right physical qualities to partner either one of our starting cb's. Injuries and his up and down performances makes it hard to trust himAgreed, Bailly is the biggest disappointment as he has it all for me but is probably more injury prone than Jones.
Kostov
Full Member
For all this ball playing strength Lindelof has over Smalling I really don't see it as worth it, compared to the defensive output you get compared to Smalling. Yeah he is definitely better on the ball and is more cultured but he is hardly a good passer, all he does is pass to Maguire or AWB, sometimes (like yesterday) he can run forward with the ball with very little to gain aaaand that's about it. Personally I'd keep Smalling if we have no intent of buying another CB. Smalling and Maguire partnership would be a much more solid defense than what we have now.
On the other hand the thought of Smalling and AWB handling the ball (or trying to) at that right side, terrifies me.
On the other hand the thought of Smalling and AWB handling the ball (or trying to) at that right side, terrifies me.
Ace of Spades
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No, selling him is the right decision. We have too many average to good defenders, but no top class ones.
flappyjay
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You are similar camp to those people who think Williams is better than Shaw. Tuanzebe hasn't even proved if he is good enough to start for Newcastle nevermind Manchester United.Tuanzebe
ArjenIsM3
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I'd sell him while someone still wants to give us a decent fee for him. It's not worked out for him here and he seems happy at Roma. Let him go. Bring in someone talented like Ajer.
flappyjay
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It's not like we even playout from the back well.This week Southampton, Palace and now Chelsea proved that we are in fact mediocre at it. We can only do it when allowed the space which means feck all as even Smalling would go rampaging runs against teams like that.
izec
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No
Scarecrow
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If we keep on insisting on playing out from the back every single time - then no, there is no way he could play.
Smalling and AWB would be comedy worthy. The other teams might decide to press us with 3 players instead, while the remaining watch the show of him and AWB passing overhit imprecise passes to each other. We would get stuck in our own pitch and Ole would manage to cure insomnia like LVG did before him.For all this ball playing strength Lindelof has over Smalling I really don't see it as worth it, compared to the defensive output you get compared to Smalling. Yeah he is definitely better on the ball and is more cultured but he is hardly a good passer, all he does is pass to Maguire or AWB, sometimes (like yesterday) he can run forward with the ball with very little to gain aaaand that's about it. Personally I'd keep Smalling if we have no intent of buying another CB. Smalling and Maguire partnership would be a much more solid defense than what we have now.
On the other hand the thought of Smalling and AWB handling the ball (or trying to) at that right side, terrifies me.
Carl
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Smalling at Roma must be different to the Smalling I've watched at United for the best part of a decade. Good player but his time has clearly come to an end at United.
Isotope
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Amen, bro.When I think of any CB it's easy to see their strengths.
Maguire - Very good header of the ball and he is good at carrying the ball forward. Strong physically too.
Smalling - Very good header of the ball and he is good defensively. Very strong physically and he has good pace.
Bailly - He has excellent pace, strength, good ground defending, aggressive but he is very injury prone which means he won't get run of games.
Lindelof - No idea. He isn't strong, poor in the air, he isn't aggressive, very passive. It's not as if his ball playing skills are like Blind's to accommodate him. With benefit of hindsight, Ole got this one very wrong. Smalling has made mistakes too at Roma but IMO he would be better than Lindelof for us.
11101
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No. It would be a huge backwards step. Hes great with a player running at him and makes plenty of tackles, plus he is good in the air, but his reading of the game is poor and he often gets caught out because of it. Any kind of diagonal movement and hes lost. Then consider how bad he is on the ball, and how we used to retreat back towards our own goal line as we passed it around him, until De Gea had to hoof it long and give it back to the opposition.
In 9 years and 5 managers he never proved he was good enough. Move on.
In 9 years and 5 managers he never proved he was good enough. Move on.
Mourinhonista
Correctly predicted France to win World Cup 2018
There were times he looked really stupid, him constantly pulling shirts...he's not better overall than what we have now. Get the money and leave him there, best for all involved.
Isotope
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Was he a disaster under LVG, a manager notorious for keeping the ball? Nope. He's actually United POTY that 2015/16 season.I'm not a fan of Lindelöf either but the way Ole sets us up, playing it out from the back, Smalling is just a disaster waiting to happen
He's good enough to get us to 2nd just two years ago. It's a long time for some people's memory, but it happened. Meanwhile, we're scrapping for 4th with additional 135m on defence, while conceding more goals.
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Nou_Camp99
what would Souness do?
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He should never have gone on loan to begin with when he was certainly our best CB before Maguire came. That's not to say he's world class and without flaws because he isn't but hes a better CB than lindelof so he should be here not at Roma. So what if he can't play out from the back. Why do we need two ball playing cb's? Vidic was never good on the ball. His partner was in Rio.
Maguire n Smalling would have seen us already qualify for the CL for me. Lindelof just gets bullied too much and he's making Maguire look an average player which he isn't. Maguire is a good CB, not world class but still good.
One of Ole's biggest errors for me. Smalling unfairly gets bundled in with Jones and he's a much better player than Phill Baresi Jones.
Maguire n Smalling would have seen us already qualify for the CL for me. Lindelof just gets bullied too much and he's making Maguire look an average player which he isn't. Maguire is a good CB, not world class but still good.
One of Ole's biggest errors for me. Smalling unfairly gets bundled in with Jones and he's a much better player than Phill Baresi Jones.