Alan Smith has been injured for over a year now, after breaking his leg against Liverpool in the FA Cup last season. Although he made a brief return in the Champions League before Christmas, it was deemed he was brought back too soon. However, now Ferguson claims Alan Smith is ready for first team action again.
“Alan will soon be really important to us – he has trained superbly,” said the Ferguson. “I gave him a game in the reserves against Liverpool and it showed he needed a game. When we put him in midfield in the second half he did really well. He is absolutely outstanding in training and is improving all the time. I could play him today, no problem at all, but the form of the team at the moment has kept him out.”