Chris Smalling, a defender for AS Roma, has mocked former club manager, Jose Mourinho by refuting reports that he is unwilling to play through discomfort.

This follows Giallorossi’s recent dismissal of Mourinho.

NEW TELEGRAPH recalls that Daniele De Rossi took over for the 60-year-old when he was fired by Roma earlier this week.

But Smalling tried to correct the record and stated that, despite a challenging end to his Man United career, he has never looked to leave Roma, who helped relaunch his career, after Mourinho was fired.

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He said: “Let me start by clarifying that I have never asked to, nor even contemplated, leaving this great club.

“No footballer wants to spend their days in a treatment room, and this period of time away from my teammates has challenged me, with setback after setback.

“I have, and will always, put the needs of my teammates first, but the absolute priority for the medical team is to guarantee that I can play a significant role in the latter part of the season and for seasons to come.

“Guided only by specialists, I have been open to all solutions, short and long, and any insinuation that I have dictated a treatment plan is false.

“With surgery not an option proposed by any specialist I have engaged with, I have to trust the expertise that guides my recovery plan which, contrary to popular belief, does include painkillers. A lot of them, in fact.”