United defender suffers food poisoning on holiday

Manchester United defender Chris Smalling has been hospitalised while on vacation due to food poisoning, according to the club.

The 26-year-old centre-back flown out to the Indonesian city of Bali after being involved in England’s round of 16 exit at Euro 2016 and was not due to report back to pre-season training until later in the month.

Alarm bells were set off when a picture of Smalling with his head wrapped in bandages surfaced on Twitter, leading many to believe that he may have suffered minor injuries while surfing:

Twitter: Chris Smalling was in RS Bali. Reportedly he was stung by a jellyfish while surfing. Get well soon Chris Smalling! https://t.co/GXdk3fLTKW (@rezki_titi)

However, the club have moved quickly to clarify those rumours, saying that he had fainted after suffering food poisoning on Sunday.

The explanation seems pretty strange, considering the wrapping around Smalling’s head, but the 26-year-old could have fallen over after fainting.

As you can see in the picture above, the England international was well enough to sign a United shirt for one of the hospital staff.

José Mourinho will be hoping that the matter is nothing serious and the defender will be aiming to recover in time for United’s pre-season tour of China, with the first friendly against Borussia Dortmund on July 22.