Chris Smalling has said that he is not unfazed by challenge for places provided by players like Fabio da Silva. The 20-year-old went to Old Trafford this summer for £10million from Fulham in one of the most eyebrow-raising transfers so far after agreeing a deal back in January.

It has been a meteoric rise to success for the young centre-back, who was plucked from obscurity by Roy Hodgson two years ago to move to Craven Cottage from non-league Maidstone.