Smith satisfied after reserve return

Alan Smith declared himself extremely satisfied after completing his first public appearance since the horrific double leg break he suffered at Liverpool last February.

Exactly 184 days since fracturing his shin and breaking an ankle attempting to charge down a John Arne Riise shot at Anfield, the Manchester United striker emerged unscathed from a 66-minute appearance in a 7-2 reserve-team triumph over Preston at Deepdale.

"I have worked hard for that all through the summer," said the 25-year-old. "That is what my goal has been. Playing for the reserves is a step up from training and hopefully, in a few weeks time I will have had some more reserve games and be able to make the step up to the first team."

He added: "The first half I felt okay but I started to get a bit tired 15 minutes into the second half, which is why I came off."

Although Smith did not get on the score sheet, he turned in his usual bustling display, particularly during the first half, and felt no ill effects from his exertions.

"I just need a few matches under my belt, although I think I could have played all night and not scored.

"But my movement was okay and I just need to build up my strength a little bit."

Restored to Sir Alex Ferguson's array of attacking options, Smith could turn into a key figure at Old Trafford this season.

However, in a one-sided contest, his contribution to this evening's game was overshadowed by that of young strike partner Giuseppe Rossi.

Capped for the first time at under-21 level by Italy last week, Rossi converted two well-taken efforts after half-time to ensure the visitors progressed with the minimum of fuss. Phil Marsh (two), Chris Eagles, Danny Rose and David Jones also on target for the visitors.