The former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has lauded the hard work Chris Smalling has put in to become one of the leaders of the current Red Devils team.
The England defender has been in scintillating form this season and has given able leadership to a Manchester United defence which has the meanest record in the Premier League this term.
Smalling has been one of the success stories of Louis van Gaal’s reign at Old Trafford and is one of the leaders of the current Manchester United team, behind Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick.
Ferdinand believes Smalling should be proud of the progress he has made this season and feels the defender has been a talismanic presence at the back for Manchester United in recent times.
The former England defender said on BT Sport: “He should be pleased with himself now.
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“He has started the season as a man on a mission; to cement his place in the Man United team and then build himself to be the talisman in that backline.
“At the moment he is the leading the team from the back, he is doing very well in that back four and he is probably the most consistent centre half in the league this year.
"That is the testament to his hard work.”
Ferdinand explained that the Manchester United defender has worked hard to become the player that he is today as he feels while the former Fulham man was always talented he was still far from the finished article when he arrived at Old Trafford in 2010.
However, the former England man stressed that the hard work and dedication that he has shown over the years are finally paying off.
“He has the desire to work hard. When he came to Manchester United, you could see the athletic ability he has got; physically he is very capable, wants to defend but the other parts of his game, in terms of the finesse, the touch, the passing of the ball, may be the reading and the concentration wasn’t there.
“But he is building on that and that something he identified. Testimony to his hard work, you are finally seeing the full slate now.”
