Man Utd defender Chris Smalling has officially signed a new contract at the club to extend his stay until 2022, but the reaction hasn’t been universally positive from fans.
The 29-year-old has been with the Red Devils since 2010 and has gone on to make 307 appearances for the club while winning a whole host of trophies.
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Despite playing a prominent role under Jose Mourinho, it hasn’t helped tighten up the United defence as they’ve conceded 26 goals in just 16 Premier League games so far this season, giving them the worst defensive record of the top nine sides in the standings.
With that in mind, it’s no real surprise that the decision to hand him a new contract hasn’t gone down particularly well, as seen in the tweets below from countless supporters.
Many have been critical of the club’s decision to extend his stay, albeit it remains to be seen if he continues to play such a crucial role or if possible summer transfer plans mean that he will be kept on in order to act as key depth with United looking to compete on multiple fronts.
As noted by the Independent, it was suggested that Mourinho was far from happy this past summer over the club’s inability to bring in another defender and bolster his backline.
In turn, it’s unclear as to whether he has now simply accepted that he will not be bringing in any new faces, and as a result will have to continue to show faith in the likes of Smalling.
For the England international, he may be well advised to avoid reading the reaction that the announcement has received on social media, but on a personal level, he will be delighted to have extended his stay at Man Utd and will undoubtedly be desperate to help them to achieve success moving forward.
We are delighted to announce @ChrisSmalling has signed a new #MUFC contract.
Congrats, Chris! ? pic.twitter.com/iKFK32ep84
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 15, 2018
Omfg ????? we’re such a banter club
— Nick (@PeruvianPrick6) December 15, 2018
Thanks, son’s crying now.
— Hayles (@Hayles_101) December 15, 2018
WORST NOTIFICATION IVE EVER HAD
— Jack????????? (@JCGGMU) December 15, 2018
Banter club
— Nicole! 2.0 (@mademetoxic) December 15, 2018
Lads it’s not April 1st.
— Pranav Shahaney (@PrSchadenfreude) December 15, 2018
Hahahaha what a club
— Josh (@JoshLee2207) December 15, 2018
What a joke
— Watson (@ashlikewatson) December 15, 2018
This is great news for the Premier League strikers!!! ???
— JOSH ™ (@JoshMclenses) December 15, 2018
Finished club.
— Salman (@UtdSalman) December 15, 2018
Thinking of Koulibaly/Aldewerield right now pic.twitter.com/nw5uiPIwdG
— Siphesihle Ngubeni (@SeezyDaGOAT11) December 15, 2018
This is why we’ll never progress or move forward. Literally even the club accepts mediocrity.
The only way i’ll be content if he’s a squad player at best, however if he plays 30+ games in a season we are done for?
— T??s? ?¹-Yahya™ (@RealistYahz) December 15, 2018
I thought Jose wanted to fix the defence?
— JEROME (@Goonerboi_) December 15, 2018
