In this three-part series, I’ll be looking at Matt’s two-and-a-half years playing for Salford, as well as how the three managers he played under valued him very differently.
Expectations
If you sign thirty-two-year-old striker Matt Smith for your club, it’s fairly obvious what you’re getting, isn’t it? Everything about him screams he’s an old-fashioned centre forward, a proper throwback target man. Great in the air, and a real handful for defenders to deal with. For better or worse, he’s of a type that’s quickly becoming extinct in the modern game.
Timing
Smith was brought into Salford City during the January 2022 transfer window to play under manager Gary Bowyer. The timing of the signing is important, as in the previous five games, the club had risen from 17th to 10th in the League Two table and sat only four points outside the playoffs. I feel the League position helped build a case to bring in a player like Matt, as this would only make sense if the owners could feel the prospect of promotion to be a real possibility.
Playing for Gary Bowyer
Matt was a perfect fit at this point, as Bowyer’s direct style of play focused heavily on Matt’s strengths in aerial duels. I do think it’s important to give some context here about a similarity in the way the owners likely viewed Bowyer and Smith. I’m confident that neither of the pair were seen as options for the long term by the Class of ’92 owners at Salford. I say this because the attacking, exciting brand of football the ownership group publicly craved does not match the playing style of a Bowyer-managed team, featuring a target man like Smith. And here is where I feel the connection between Matt and Gary lies.
Short Term Fix
In their own ways, both manager and player can be seen as a short-term cheat code to get out of League Two. Bowyer, despite his cautious playing style was likely viewed as an attractive candidate due to his experience of leading Blackpool to promotion into League One in 2017. That’s clear enough. Whereas with Matt, who clearly thrives on a steady diet of high crosses into penalty area. had been plying his trade in the Championship since 2014, so could be expected to be a standout striker at League Two level. It seemed to come down to a clear choice for the owners between their long-term vision for the club versus the appeal of short-term success. With the appointment of Bowyer, and then the recruitment of Smith, the deciding factor here was clearly the prospect of promotion to League One.
The End of the Dream Team
Ultimately, there’s nothing wrong with putting your principles aside for the greater good of a project. At least that’s true as long as the success eventually arrives. Unfortunately, in Salford’s case, a tenth-place finish at the end of the 2021/22 season saw Bowyer sacked. This sadly spelt the end of this partnership between a manager wanting to play direct football and his dream target man striker.
So, what was the next move for Salford City? Tune in for the next instalment of this series next weekend and you’ll find out exactly that.
Discussion about this post