Chris Smalling believes Manchester United teammate Radamel Falcao will return to his best for next season.

The Colombian striker, 29, has struggled during his season-long loan from Monaco but Smalling feels a lot of that has to do with the fact he has been sporadically injured.

Former FC Porto and Atletico Madrid star Falcao has scored just four goals this term but Smalling is backing him to rediscover his absolute best regardless of whether he remains at Old Trafford or not.

"I think with his record, he's a marked man. He does get kicked a lot in every game and it's because of what he's done in the game," said Smalling.

"He's had a couple of injuries on the way, and with every player that means you don't get the consistency of being able to train every week. It affects your flow, especially with strikers who need a run of goals to set them off.

"I think when the manager has given him a chance and he's trained well and he's stayed fit, you can see he is getting sharper and sharper and with a good pre-season he'll be firing again next season."