Smalling Hails Battling Display

Manchester United defender Chris Smalling says the Reds had to fight hard to earn all three points in Sunday's 1-0 win over Manchester City.

The defender was named Man of the Match by fans on Twitter - earning 61 per cent of the total votes - for his impressive defensive display at the Etihad Stadium, but it was a first-half strike from Marcus Rashford which sealed the important victory.

Having had little time to prepare following Thursday's clash with Liverpool at Old Trafford, several players suffered from cramp in the latter stages of the match, and Smalling was pleased to see his team-mates' dedication.

Speaking to MUTV after the game, he said: “We dug in and got the result we needed. I think everyone put their bodies on the line; they had a lot of corners and there were a lot of last-ditch tackles. I think you could see that the players were really working for the cause.

“I think we controlled the game for large parts and the first-half performance was very good as well. They didn’t have many clear-cut chances, there was [Sergio] Aguero’s right at the end, but other than that I think we controlled it very well. We made them play in front of us and they couldn’t come up with the answers."

Smalling received a yellow card just 10 minutes into the contest but went on to produce a solid display at the heart of the defence, and says he had to "manage the game" carefully.

“I think to get a booking so early in the game made it very risky for the rest of the match," he added. "That was a situation where I don’t think it was necessarily a booking but if I’d done it again it probably could have been – I had to manage the game for a very long period with being on a booking."