Smalling reflects on unbelievable season and ready to return to school
CHRIS SMALLING is ready to swap the training ground for the classroom to finish the studies he abandoned in his rapid rise to stardom.
The Manchester United defender only joined the club a year ago but he is being tipped for big things for club and country after being catapulted from non-league to the Champions League in three seasons.
Smalling signed from Fulham in January last year in a lightning £10million swoop by United – and he has not looked back.
But the 21-year-old, who will go to the European Under-21 Championship in Denmark with England this summer, wants to take the business degree he had planned before he hit the big time.
Smalling, who has been Rio Ferdinand’s regular centre-back partner when Nemanja Vidic has been out, said: “Three years ago I was playing for Maidstone United and I can’t say I had ever dreamed of playing in the types of games I’m involved in now with United.
“We had to wash our own shorts and socks at Maidstone and I was driving a Renault Clio. I was studying for my A-Levels so I was at school and then I played on Saturdays.
Lucky
“More than anything, it was a case of concentrating on getting into university.
“The opportunity then arose to turn professional and I took it – and since coming to United it’s just like a dream. I know how lucky I am.
“I turned down a place at Leicester to study business management but I had about five other offers and was only five months away from starting my course.
“After training at Fulham, Charlton and Middlesbrough I decided to join Fulham. My exams were in June 2008 and I started pre-season almost immediately – my last exam was after I’d started the training programme.
“My education is something I could return to and an Open University course would fill my time in the afternoons.
“It’s been an epic season and I expected to get a few games but the magnitude of some of them has surprised me because they’ve been very high-profile.
“But the manager has shown faith in me and I want to reward him.”