Smalling Hails Dominant Reds Performance

Chris Smalling believes Manchester United’s 4-1 Champions League demolition of CSKA Moscow on Wednesday night was the most dominant performance of the season so far.

A Romelu Lukaku brace and a composed penalty by Anthony Martial, who later claimed the Man-of-the-Match award, handed the Reds a 3-0 half-time lead at the VEB Arena, silencing the boisterous home crowd.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan then slotted home in the 57th minute to make it 4-0, before second-half substitute Konstantin Kuchaev netted a late consolation goal for the hosts, though it did not stop United extending the lead at the top of Group A.
There is no doubt that conceding late, and having a clean sheet spoiled, would have vexed Smalling, but the England defender was still in a jubilant mood following the victory in Russia.

“I think that’s as dominant as we have been,” Smalling told BT Sport after the match. “Scoring those goals in the first half, it was probably the best first half we have played all season.

“To come here with this atmosphere, in arguably one of our toughest games in the group, I think it is a true testament to our team,” he continued. “We’re showing we can adapt, we can change formation and we can come to different atmospheres and play in different ways.
“I think [the win] is a big step towards qualifying, it sets us up nicely and we can’t ask for any more. If we can keep this form up, hopefully we can finish top of the group.”

The 31-time England international also heralded the performances of Lukaku and Martial, who were the chief destroyers in Moscow, during his post-match interview with MUTV.

“He’s just a beast,” Smalling said of Lukaku. “You can play it into him and he can hold it up, people can run off him, and he’s just a nightmare to play against.

“Right from pre-season, Anthony’s been leading the way in training,” he added. “He’s terrifying one-v-one, as we’ve seen tonight, I’m glad he’s on my team.”

Smalling was also keen to praise the travelling Reds who trekked all the way to Moscow, to support their beloved United, as well as looking ahead to Saturday’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace at Old Trafford.

“The fans were brilliant,” he said. “The commitment they showed to travel all this way, it’s brilliant. So we’re thankful we could put on a performance that warrants that journey.

“It’s always nice to be able to play at home, our home form has been brilliant and if we can finish this month strongly and go into the internationals on the back of another great win, then it’s been a great month.”