England defender makes his return from injury in Champions League

England defender Chris Smalling made a successful comeback from injury on Wednesday night, helping Manchester United to a Champions League victory over Braga.

Smalling, 22, had missed the start of the season due to a metatarsal injury sustained in pre-season but was back in Sir Alex Ferguson's line-up in Portugal as the Reds won 3-1.

And now the former Fulham and England Under-21 man is just delighted to be back on the pitch after a frustrating few months in the treatment room.

He said: "It's been so long and it's been frustrating watching from the sidelines.

"But it's good to be able to come in and come back with a win as well so I'm feeling happy."

United had to come from behind too, as Braga took a second-half lead before there was the added drama of a floodlight failure, causing a delay in play for 45 minutes.

But United rallied and goals from Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney and Javier Henandez sealed the victory and Smalling believes the forced delay helped his side gather their thoughts ahead of the comeback.

"We knew we really had to pick ourselves up," he added.

"We had a lot of the ball but we weren't really getting anywhere. So yes, it really helped us."