Alan Smith - Forgiven or Forgotten

As we enter the second week of the January Transfer window speculation linking Leeds with former favourite Alan Smith is a hot topic. The 30 year old Leeds born boy made 172 appearances for the Whites scoring 38 goals in his time at Elland Road. Now could he be making a shock return?

Smith who was an icon at United lost respect from many of the fans when he left his beloved Leeds United for bitter rivals Manchester United. Smith left in difficult circumstances with Leeds being relegated to the second tier of English Football, Smith on that fateful day was a picture of emotion as stood saluting the crushed United fans with tear filled eyes. Those tears were quickly erased from his face as he swapped white for red in a move that angered the city of Leeds.

Did Smith betray the fans by making this heart wrenching move? Or was it out of necessity as Leeds needed to move the player on to cope with their increasing debt? Manchester United were the only high profile team that came in for the Leeds youngster, in reality could a move to one of the biggest teams in the world be ignored?

Smith didn't have the same success as he did at Leeds, scoring 7 goals in 61 appearances in three years at Old Trafford. In his time there his reputation as a prolific striker diminished and he embraced a more dynamic role playing his part in the midfield. He left Manchester United for Newcastle in 2007 and is yet find the back of the net which demonstrates his positional change from his creative forward play at Leeds to his now bullish approach in the middle of the park for the Magpies.

After Newcastle's exit from the Premier League Smith played a huge part in their dominant campaign in the Championship. However so far this season he has not been able to break into the first-team. Cue the speculation, Smith vowed when he left he would love to play for Leeds again, has the time finally come? Manager Simon Grayson has spoken out saying that the reaction of the fans will not influence his decision on whether to move for Smith.

Grayson is looking to strengthen his squad as United look to push for promotion back to the top flight, but does Smith still have what it takes to wear the famous white shirt? Who knows! However what many people do know is that if Smith returns his reception as Elland Road will be a mixed bag of jubilation and hostility.

Fans have called for Leeds to move on and focus on the future by bringing bright young players through, but could the youngster of old rekindle the greatness that once was Leeds United and fire them back to big time along with the new generation of hero's?