Man Utd Too Eager To Sell Smith?

Sir Alex Ferguson is likely to escape censure from the Football Association in the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo's red card in the 1-1 draw at Portsmouth, despite the Manchester United manager saying referee Steve Bennett "loved the opportunity to send him off again".

And you can ALWAYS count on Sir Alex to blow a fuse when things go slightly off the rails.

But our new utility player - straight out of the Paul Madeley mould (another player who experienced life at Elland Road) - says he is happy at St James' Park, no matter where he plays.

Smith insists he is happy to stay in midfield for Newcastle after enjoying his part in the 3-1 win at Bolton on Saturday.

Smith: "I'm happy to play there and I'm happy to get better in those positions.

"I enjoyed the role I played at Bolton. When I spoke to the manager, he told me I would be playing in any one of the front six positions.

"When you're not at home, that position's a little bit different. You can't get forward as much because you have defensive responsibilities. But that's no problem.

"I've been working on timing my runs to get on the end of things as well and it worked in pre-season when I scored against Sampdoria."