Is Smalling the best defender in the league?

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Andy_Cole said:
I really wouldn't swap him with anyone. He's an absolute beast. His reputation with neutrals is poor but he really is damn good.

Right now I think he's the best. He's way better than Kompany. John Terry perhaps with his experience may edge it but I think by the end of the season Smalling will surpass him.
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He's definitely one of the best in the league at the moment. Can't think of anyone better over the past 8-12 months or so.
 
He has shown this kind of form before, I'm not sure why anyone is surprised

He obviously isn't in the same Bracket as kompany or terry, but I think he can be if he is first choice over a couple of seasons

Funnily though I still think Jones will be even better
 
Yes, he is. I've been saying it for over a year but I wouldn't swap him or Jones for any other defender in the league.
 
I would say he currently is, along with Darmian he's been our stand out player so far, he hasnt put a foot wrong and he seems to have won every challenge be it tackle or header.

I wouldn't swap him for anyone at the moment.
 
I have always rated him and would put him in the top 3 for sure, he's a class act and is brilliant in nearly all defensive facets of the game. His distribution flaws are exaggerated in my opinion.. it is much harder to play the ball out at United than it is for any other top side.
 
The one thing that holds him back is his passing. Sometimes he'll make the stupidest pass and create a danger out of nothing. If he can cut out his brain dead moments, he'll be one of the best in the league.
 
Smores said:
Bit of an embarrassing thread to be honest. He did okay last season but made plenty of mistakes. This season he's been excellent but it's been two games and one of those was against Aston Villa!

If he carried his form through the rest of the season then sure.
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Can you name some of these mistakes? Only one that comes to mind for me is the red card.



lem8sh said:
It is a factor in deciding the "best defender in the league" which is the title of this thread.
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How is his ability on the ball a factor when we're talking about the best at defending?
 
What's the next thread going to be.

Is Chris Smalling God?
 
sizzling sausages said:
Can you name some of these mistakes? Only one that comes to mind for me is the red card.




How is his ability on the ball a factor when we're talking about the best at defending?
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You think Chris Smalling only made one mistake last season? Holy feck. He had a major feck up yesterday with a suicide ball, he made plenty of those last season to.
 
He's definitely in with a shout because theres been a decline on the level of CBs in the league. Probably still Terry
 
sizzling sausages said:
How is his ability on the ball a factor when we're talking about the best at defending?
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When we are talking about the best defender (not the best at defending), everything matters. In fact, it is extremely weird how a lot of people here have yet to understand that being decent at passing is a pre-requisite, not a bonus in LVG system.

Anyway, Smalling's passing has improved a lot under LVG. He isn't Hummels yet in that aspect, but his passing now is quite acceptable, and likely going to be further improved. Before LVG, his passing was really a liability.
 
Getsme said:
You think Chris Smalling only made one mistake last season? Holy feck. He had a major feck up yesterday with a suicide ball, he made plenty of those last season to.
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Obviously he made more than one, I just couldn't think of any off the top of my head. Which I should be able to do if there was plenty of them like the other poster claimed.

Revan said:
When we are talking about the best defender (not the best at defending), everything matters. In fact, it is extremely weird how a lot of people here have yet to understand that being decent at passing is a pre-requisite, not a bonus in LVG system.

Anyway, Smalling's passing has improved a lot under LVG. He isn't Hummels yet in that aspect, but his passing now is quite acceptable, and likely going to be further improved. Before LVG, his passing was really a liability.
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Yeah, I agree if he's talking about the full aspect of defending, I thought he meant just the defensive side of it.

I don't think he's the best defender in the league anyway fwiw. He's definitely one of the best though imo, and that's good enough for me.
 
Getsme said:
You think Chris Smalling only made one mistake last season? Holy feck. He had a major feck up yesterday with a suicide ball, he made plenty of those last season to.
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Most stats only count mistakes where it leads up to a goal or chance. Mistakes that are solved by their own teammates like a GK rushing out and getting it in time regardless of how retarded the mistake was does not count on many websites.
 
I think he has to weaknesses defensively.

When it comes to passing he’s definitely not very good, but for 9/10 managers he’s good enough.

You have to take under consideration that in LvG system CBs are asked to do a lot more than in any other system. In Barca for example, it was mostly midfield and attackers who did this tiki-taka thing, in our case it’s mostly keeper, defenders and DMs.

I might be wrong but I suppose every CB in the league misplaces a pass every now and then, the problem is though in LvG system it’s highlighted.
 
This is a ridiculous thread. The guy was, at best, unreliable and, at worst, a liability until the tail end of 2014. Many on here would've sold him after his idiocy in the derby.

He was the best of a bad bunch for the final 3 months of last season and has had 2 really good games in the present campaign. If he can keep his current form going for another year or so then maybe he'll justify being bracketed with the top defenders in the league.
 
Rezyuz said:
Most stats only count mistakes where it leads up to a goal or chance. Mistakes that are solved by their own teammates like a GK rushing out and getting it in time regardless of how retarded the mistake was does not count on many websites.
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Indeed, stats, although can be a good indication can tell a very differnt story to reality.
Smalling is a very good player, and he is on excellent form at the moment but he has it all to prove IMO, I'd even go as far as saying he isnt the first choice CB at United let alne the best in the league.
 
Reading over this thread again - there are some people on the extreme ends of both sides of the spectrum.

fecking calm down both of you!
 
I'd rank Koscielny and Terry above him, but that's probably out of virtue of their ball-playing abilities. Purely from a defensive perspective, Smalling is very good and equal to pretty much every centre back in the league. the technical side of things is lacking, but that won't be so pronounced once our midfield really clicks.

Kompany's endured a pretty mediocre eighteen months or so, but I still feel people really undermine him. If he is able to recapture his form of old then he will be the best centre back in the league. It's a big 'if' though I know.

I'd say Smalling's comfortably top five.
 
Hernandez - BFA said:
Reading over this thread again - there are some people on the extreme ends of both sides of the spectrum.

fecking calm down both of you!
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This is it, he is a decent defender. However he isn't anywhrere near the level of Rio or Vidic, but no one expects him to be. At the moment he is the best we have got (and even thats debatable)
 
RedMilo said:
Nowhere near but he is starting to show some consistency at last, time for Jones who has more raw talent imo to do the same.
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Jones doesn't hold a candle to Smalling. So much talk of this 'raw talent' he apparently possesses, but what is it exactly? He's not technically outstanding and only marginally superior to Smalling. He's not very intelligent either. The amount of times he loses his man in the box and is positionally astray is staggering. He's still reckless and a hazard to himself also.

I've never subscribed to this belief that Jones is the superior talent to Smalling. There's always been clear daylight between the two and now it's being emphatically drummed home. I'd be surprised if Jones lasts more than two/three seasons here quite frankly.
 
Glanville95 said:
I'd rank Koscielny and Terry above him, but that's probably out of virtue of their ball-playing abilities. Purely from a defensive perspective, Smalling is very good and equal to pretty much every centre back in the league. the technical side of things is lacking, but that won't be so pronounced once our midfield really clicks.

Kompany's endured a pretty mediocre eighteen months or so, but I still feel people really undermine him. If he is able to recapture his form of old then he will be the best centre back in the league. It's a big 'if' though I know.

I'd say Smalling's comfortably top five.
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Fair assessment. There's some aspects where Smalling is better than both of those but overall he's still behind them imo.
 
He is not the best in the league but he has come good of late. Currently he is our best defender and that's all that counts to me.
 
If he can stay fit, he has everything going for him. Pace, strength, positioning, beast in the air. Only question mark is his ball distribution, but I think that's looked at more because Van Gaal is the manager. Other than that, he's been great this season, and if he carries on, I see no reason why he can't be up there with the best.
 
Eckers99 said:
This is a ridiculous thread. The guy was, at best, unreliable and, at worst, a liability until the tail end of 2014. Many on here would've sold him after his idiocy in the derby.

He was the best of a bad bunch for the final 3 months of last season and has had 2 really good games in the present campaign. If he can keep his current form going for another year or so then maybe he'll justify being bracketed with the top defenders in the league.
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Many here post nonsense.
 
Eckers99 said:
This is a ridiculous thread. The guy was, at best, unreliable and, at worst, a liability until the tail end of 2014. Many on here would've sold him after his idiocy in the derby.

He was the best of a bad bunch for the final 3 months of last season and has had 2 really good games in the present campaign. If he can keep his current form going for another year or so then maybe he'll justify being bracketed with the top defenders in the league.
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Only guys like you.
 
Best 1v1 defender in the league. Also not as bad on the ball as it is often claimed; his lanky frame makes him look a bit awkward on the ball leading people to underrate his ability, same as Fellaini.

I could see Koz being rated above him overall though, just to name one.
 
I genuinely believe that if he played for anybody other than Utd he would be recognised as one of the top few in the league at least. Yes his distribution is poor but I can't remember the last bad game he had and he reads the game brilliantly as well as having all of the required physical attributes
 
Top 3 for me, but I really wouldn't swap him for anyone. One thing he's always bad at is his distribution and ball-playing. Other than that he's just got everything needed for a top CB.
 
I said last season he should have been in the team of the year along with Terry. It was a joke having Cahill in there.

He's carried that form over into the first two games this season. Hopefully his performances start getting the praise they deserve (Neville giving him MotM vs Spurs is hopefully the start).
 
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