Kevin Nolan plans to keep using Alan Smith up front for Notts County

Notts County manager Kevin Nolan has vowed to keep using Alan Smith up front rather than in midfield.

The former England international came to prominence as both a striker and as a right-winger during his time at first club Leeds United.

However, he was converted to midfield while he was on the books at Manchester United, where he's largely remained in terms of position since leaving Old Trafford.

Despite his positional reshuffle, former Newcastle United teammate Nolan used him up front in the Checkatrade Trophy win against Everton Under-21s in midweek.

He told the Nottingham Post: “He holds the ball up and he’s got a lovely touch. You can see when he gets into them holes, he can play them through balls fantastically well.

“He’s a great lad, and everybody who knows him around the club knows how much it means to him to play games and I thought on Tuesday night it showed again that he was a big performer.

“I thought him and Jonathan Forte caused Everton a lot of problems. I thought they linked up really well and in certain patches looked really good.

“The goal was a great knock down by Smudge and a great turn and finish by Forte. I was really pleased with their output.”

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