Smith Staying At United

Alan Smith is looking forward to fight for his place at Manchester United. That's hardly surprising, we all love him for his never-say-die attitude but a lot of people have already dismissed his chances as he's trying to regain his sharpness after recovering from a horrific injury. Smith was noticeably out of his depth against Crewe and Southend but his agent Alex Black insists Smudger won't give up.

'He won't be going anywhere,' explained Black. 'The club has put in place a special training regime for him. He wants to stay at Manchester United and he has talked things though with the club and Sir Alex Ferguson.

'There was never even permission granted from United for him to talk to Leeds.'

Well, it would certainly be better for Smith to play in games in order to restore his pace and sharpness. But as far as United are concerned, it's a relief to know we have four strikers to call into action if necessary. Whether it's worth to trust an out-of-form player to provide the necessary backup, that's another matter. It will be interesting to see what happens when Rossi is coming back in January.

The sad thing, though, is that Smith will almost certainly be sold if Fergie gets in a new striker next summer. I will miss him even though I know we could get a much better player than him.

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