Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted Alan Smith is still nowhere near
100% fit following his horrific double leg break.
Seven months after suffering the injury at Liverpool, the
Manchester United forward announced his impending return over a
fortnight ago.
Yet, it was only on Tuesday night in Lisbon that Ferguson finally
let Smith make his comeback appearance, and even then it was only
as a late substitute in United's Champions League triumph over
Benfica.
The 25-year-old responded to his five-minute outing in typically
wholehearted fashion. But, already Smith has been told not to
expect a recall to Ferguson's starting line-up for Sunday's Old
Trafford clash with Newcastle.
"Alan is not 100%," said Ferguson. "He is still well short of that.
"You always know Alan will play with honesty and make it hard for
defenders, which is one of the reasons why I brought him on."
Saha's sole strike was enough to give them their first Champions
League away win in almost three years. Not since Diego Forlan
netted the winner against Panathinaikos in November 2003 have the
Red Devils tasted victory on foreign soil, one of the major reasons
why their European campaigns have been so poor in recent
years.
Although Ferguson pointed out not many of his present crop have
been associated with that long run of failure, the Scot accepted it
was a record that needing breaking.
"For a club with our history, we expect to do better away from
home," he said.
