We didn't have much growing up but I'll look after Mum, says United ace Smalling

By Chris Wheeler
Last updated at 10:51 PM on 10th February 2012

First the colour issue. Black and white — and the thought process Chris Smalling finds himself going through in the dressing room before every game.
‘I feel more comfortable in the white gym socks we use for training every day,’ said Smalling, explaining his rather peculiar pre-match ritual.
‘So I cut the bottoms off our black socks, put them over the top of the white ones and tape it around. I weigh up which black sock is longer and that always goes on the right foot, even if there’s not a lot in it. It can be millimetres. Dunno why, but after I’d done it once I kept on.
Familiar face: Chris Smalling's rise from non-league to Premier League has been rapid
Familiar face: Chris Smalling's rise from non-league to Premier League has been rapid
Looking at ease: Smalling is coping well with weight of expectation at United
Looking at ease: Smalling is coping well with weight of expectation at United
‘There are no other superstitions, just the socks for some reason.’
Understandably, given the highly sensitive nature of Manchester United’s encounter with their old rivals Liverpool in the wake of Luis Suarez’s eight-match ban for racially abusing Patrice Evra, all questions about the issue were off limits when Smalling spoke to Sportsmail at the club’s Carrington training ground this week to help launch Sport Relief.
But with an FA Cup fourth round defeat at Anfield two weeks ago still fresh in the memory, there is no hiding from the enmity he has so far experienced on four occasions when the two most successful clubs in English football collide.
‘The intensity of it did surprise me,’ said Smalling, who hopes he will be cleared to return from an abductor muscle strain today. ‘There’s a massive rivalry and all week it’s building to one game. It’s good to be a part of something that everyone’s looking at.
‘It was unfortunate when we played Liverpool in the cup because we dominated for long periods. But, being at Old Trafford, we can stamp our authority and build that pressure like they do at Anfield.
‘All credit to their fans, they make it a real cauldron. It’s good to face the hatred at Anfield — it makes us stronger when we walk away from there with something. But the United fans will be more than behind us this time.’
Part of the team: Smalling celebrates with Nani
Part of the team: Smalling celebrates with Nani
Coming hot on the heels of games at Arsenal and Chelsea, this is what Smalling looked forward to when he made a £10million move to Old Trafford from Fulham only two years after playing non-league football for Maidstone.
The 22-year-old defender made 33 appearances in his first season at United, winning the title and playing in a Champions League semi-final. He has featured another 22 times this term, despite suffering a fractured bone in his foot in October and a bout of illness over Christmas.
Now a regular for United, Smalling has also won his first two senior caps for England this season.
Along with Danny Welbeck and Tom Cleverley, he represents a bright future for club and country as Rio Ferdinand nears the end of his career.
‘It’s just been one thing after another,’ he said. ‘I expected to get my chance in terms of the league and cups but maybe not in the calibre of games they were. The Champions League was the really big one.
‘You see on the TV that United are winning this and that, but when you’re a part of it this is something quite special.
‘Being in the public eye at United is a different type of pressure and one that I quite enjoy. Before this run of fixtures with Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool, the manager said, “These are the games you want to be a part of”, and I really do.
Club class: Chris Smalling in action for Manchester United
International man: Chris Smalling is action for England
For club and country: Smalling wears the white training socks taped to his black matchday ones
‘It’s good that we have so many games here. You can’t really dwell on it and think, “I’ve made it”, when I’ve only got a couple of caps for England.’
Injuries to Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic have given Smalling opportunities at the heart of United’s defence. On many occasions this season, however, he has found himself playing outside his comfort zone at right back.
‘It’s surprised me the number of times I’ve played there,’ he admitted. ‘It takes some getting used to. I’m nowhere near as comfortable at right back but I try my best.
‘When you think of all the players who have walked through the doors here, if the manager picks you and has confidence in you, it gives you a boost. I’ve got no fears.’
There have been some difficult moments, notably a 6-1 defeat at home by Manchester City and the shock Champions League exit in Basle. United’s trip to Ajax next week will take place in uncharted Europa League territory.
Big break: Smalling got his first taste of Premier League football with Fulham
Big break: Smalling got his first taste of Premier League football with Fulham
‘Both of those games were a big blow we didn’t expect,’ said Smalling. ‘You shouldn’t get results like that early in the season and crash out of the Champions League.
‘It’s important not to dwell on it though, especially for us younger players. We don’t want to let anyone down. We need to get out there and show everyone we’ve got real confidence and pride.’
Smalling, who was five months away from going to Loughborough University to study business management when he signed for Fulham, speaks with a maturity beyond his years.
Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that he was only five when his dad, Lloyd, passed away. The family moved from Greenwich to a modest semi-detached house in Chatham, Kent, where Theresa Smalling enrolled Chris and his younger brother Jason at the local Walderslade Boys Club.
In the goals: Smalling has chipped in with some important goals in his time at United
In the goals: Smalling has chipped in with some important goals in his time at United
Chris began judo, becoming a green belt and national age-group champion before football took precedence at 15. Has he ever had to use his martial art at United?
‘No,’ he replies with a smile. ‘Maybe word gets around that I did judo and they don’t bother!’
Theresa now lives with Chris in the luxury home he has bought for the family in Cheshire, 15 minutes from United’s training ground.
Smalling, who drove a Renault Clio and got £30 in expenses at Maidstone, is unlikely to let success go to his head even though he now earns £50,000 a week at United and has a Porsche parked on the drive. He is as polite and approachable now as he was when he first arrived at Old Trafford in the summer of 2010.
Getting stuck in: Smalling is better known for his defensive work
Getting stuck in: Smalling is better known for his defensive work
‘I’d like to think I wouldn’t get too carried away and will always appreciate what I’ve got,’ he said ‘I know that not long ago I didn’t have much.
‘But it was a good upbringing. We’ve stuck together and always been there for each other. Even though mum was unemployed for some of it, we never felt like we lost out on anything.
‘I want to look after my family. I didn’t envisage buying a house quite so young but it’s good that I had the opportunity. My mum lives up here and although my brother’s at university in Leicester he tends to come up at weekends and travels to the games.’
Remember the name: Smalling with a personalised Sport Relief t-shirt
Remember the name: Smalling with a personalised Sport Relief t-shirt
Smalling has been using Jason’s sign-on to play FIFA 12 so most people don’t even know who they are up against. The trick is unlikely to work against Ferdinand, however.
‘Rio thinks he’s the best but there’s a divide because he’s on Xbox and I’m on PlayStation,’ said Smalling. ‘One of us will have to give in and trade.’ Or, like the socks, just play with both.
Chris Smalling is wearing the official Sport Relief T-shirt to celebrate its launch. Buy and personalise your T-shirt exclusively at your local Sportsdirect.com store or online at www.sportsdirect.com

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seems a well grounded young man, hope he goes far with united.
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Chris is part of SAF's legacy, which he'll pass on to his successor when he eventually retires. The new manager will inherit a rich wealth of talent, won't he?
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