Ex-Manchester United star Chris Smalling fires back at Jose Mourinho in wordy Instagram post

Chris Smalling has hit back at Jose Mourinho after coming under fire from the Portuguese coach during his time in charge of Roma.

Mourinho, who wassacked by the Serie A club on Tuesday, criticised Smalling in November for being unable to manage his injuries after a five-month spell on the sidelines.

The ‘Special One’ told reporters the former Manchester United defender 'isn't capable of playing through pain'.

He went on to say that Smalling 'holds something back' before questioning the 34-year-old’s pain threshold.

He also suggested that Smalling 'maybe struggles to sleep with toothache' – a notion that led to sections of the Roma fanbase, turning on the Englishman.

Following Mourinho’s exit earlier this week, Smalling took to Instagram to have his say on the matter and defended himself against the accusations from the former Roma boss.

“Since signing for AS Roma in 2019, my commitment and loyalty to the club has never wavered,” Smalling wrote in a post Smalling shared in both English and Italian.

“The minute I stepped foot in Roma, I instantly felt at home. Roma is my home, and the relationship I have built with AS Roma fans is something I cherish dearly.

“For that reason I wanted to jump on here to address some of the rumours that I have seen circulating over recent months. Let me start by clarifying that I have never asked to, nor even contemplated, leaving this great club.

“Speaking openly, the last few months have proved to be some of the most frustrating of my career. There are things in this game and in life that we can control, and others we simply can't. This injury has been one thing that we couldn't.

“No footballer wants to spend their days in a treatment room, and this period of time away from my teammates has