It no longer makes sense for Man Utd to retain this £80,000-a-week star and here’s why they must sell him

Why should Manchester United sell Chris Smalling to Roma

According to Express, Manchester United will hold talks with AS Roma and seal a permanent transfer for Chris Smalling in a few weeks’ time.

Smalling, who earns wages in the region of £80,000-a-week, is currently on a season-long loan deal with Roma but his performances for the Italian side have been convincing enough for them to make the move permanent.

Smalling lost his place in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s starting XI to the likes of Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof. In the pecking order, he was also expected to fall behind the injured Eric Bailly and Phil Jones. Solskjaer also has Marcos Rojo to rely upon in the hour of need.

Smalling made 24 Premier League appearances last season in which he notched up just 11 wins and eight defeats. He managed to keep four clean sheets and conceded 36 goals in those 2127 minutes. He made 30 tackles with 57 per cent tackle success rate.

It has only been two months since he joined Roma but Smalling has paired well with his central defensive partner Gianluca Mancini. Since making his debut against Atalanta on September 25th, Smalling hasn’t missed a minute, going the full 90 in five consecutive matches.

And rather than just being a warm body, Smalling has excelled in the Serie A instead of just being a bench warmer at United.

Thus, it would be a win-win situation for Solskjaer and executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward to sell Smalling. As Solskajer may look at some newer and younger options to fill his place at Old Trafford, Woodward will get the money to fund the manager’s winter transfer targets.

It would be a great situation for Smalling as well. After all, he is 29 and Solskjaer is building a squad for the future. The Englishman’s role in the squad will be almost minimal and he will just be warming the bench and playing non-league matches.

Overall, it would be a deal in which no person will be unhappy. Smalling wants to play more regularly and with the arrival of Maguire, he cannot get the game time he expects at Old Trafford.

He has already settled in well at the heart of Roma’s defence and the Serie A outfit may utilize him to the full extent. Thus, United should not hesitate to cut the cord and bid adieu to Smalling.