Chris Smalling is being talked about in exalted company but his origins were more humble with Maidstone where he had almost given up on a full-time career in the game

At 6ft 4in, quick and sleek, Chris Smalling always had the look of a Rolls-Royce defender. But, as he explains, it is more what we cannot see, what lies under the bonnet, that has underpinned his blossoming into England’s best centre half.

A suspicion that we still under-estimate the psychological dimension, especially in team sport, is heightened over discussion with the engaging Smalling, who talks about how mental application lies behind his outstanding form.

I had wondered if there had been some technical or tactical shift that has enabled him to emerge, according to Wayne Rooney, as one of the best three central defenders in the world — and, by anyone’s estimation, the best available to Roy Hodgson.

What has changed? Has Louis van Gaal