Fans see red at transfer

ALAN SMITH will join Manchester United for £7million tomorrow in one of the most controversial transfers ever completed.

Less than three weeks after he was carried shoulder high around Elland Road by Leeds fans who hailed him a hero, the 23-year-old England international will become the first new face in what is likely to be a summer of change at Old Trafford.

Official confirmation of Smith's move, which is expected to see young United full-back Danny Pugh head in the opposite direction, will not be made to the Stock Exchange until the player has completed his medical on Wednesday.

However, Ferguson's first summer signing is sure to spark fury on both sides of the Pennines.

Leeds fans still coming to terms with relegation to the Football League, have already vented their anger that a player who has spent his entire career professing loyalty to the club has so actively sought a transfer to the team they hate the most.

While Eric Cantona and Rio Ferdinand have both crossed the divide in recent years, neither had professed their love of Leeds to the same extent as Smith in his home city comparisons have been made to Luis Figo quitting Barcelona for Real Madrid three years ago.

Their anger will not be lessened by the prospect of Pugh's arrival, even though the 21-year-old, who has made seven first-team appearances for the club, is a player of promise.

Similarly, the vast Red Devils support, fresh from their FA Cup Final win over Millwall, are not happy either given Smith's badge-kissing antics at Old Trafford when he scored for Leeds a 1-1 draw in February.

In a recent website survey, 38% of United fans claimed £1 was too much to pay for a player whose muscular presence, Alex Ferguson feels, can bring an added dimension to a team that finished 15 points behind Arsenal this season.

Leeds rejected bids of £3.5m and £5.5m from United for their player of the year last week but even though there was also interest from Middlesbrough, Birmingham, Newcastle, Liverpool and Everton, Smith made it clear he wanted to join the Red Devils because of the lure of Champions League combat.

Further talks between the two clubs today finally established common ground and the deal will now be completed before Ferguson begins his summer break this weekend.

Already sceptical of the move, the Old Trafford supporters will hope it is not the prelude to the loss of Ruud van Nistelrooy to Real Madrid.

Certainly, Gill believes the overall transfer activity at United this summer needs to substantially strengthen, rather than potentially weaken, Ferguson's squad.

"We have fallen a bit short of the standards we set ourselves this season but I'm sure we will show our true character next year and be right up there challenging again," he said.

"I will be sitting down with the manager to discuss where the squad needs improving and the changes he feels need to be made and, when everyone comes back in mid-July, we will be really motivated."

Kevin Blackwell was left bewildered last night as Leeds turned their search for a new manager into a farce.

Blackwell was expected to be confirmed as Leeds manager on a two-year contract, but the board have now had to backtrack because Steve Parkin's proposed takeover of the club advanced during the weekend.

Blackwell was last week on a shortlist of three, which also included Rotherham's Ronnie Moore and Peter Jackson at Huddersfield, and was interviewed on Wednesday.

Following a board meeting on Friday, the 45-year-old was approved over the weekend and should have been officially unveiled today. Blackwell, however, was called into a meeting this morning with director Simon Morris and informed he would have to wait until the end of the week at the earliest, if at all to be installed.

Should Parkin conclude a deal he may want his own man in place, leaving chairman Gerald Krasner and his directors looking foolish for opting to undertake interviews and then unofficially handing the role to Blackwell.