Sheffield Wednesday striker Michael Smith has been awarded the Championship Goal of the Month award for October after his sensational long-range effort against former club Pompey.
Smith led the line for the Owls at Fratton Park and helped inspire his team to a 2-1 victory after the visitors went a goal behind.
The 6’3’ centre-forward assisted Josh Windass’ equalising goal early in the first half with a fine knock down. He decided the contest in the 75th minute with a stunning first-time strike against the Blues from 25 yards out – a goal no-one knew he was capable off, including the Fratton faithful.
The 33-year-old initially joined Pompey on a three-month loan spell from Swindon Town in January 2016. He netted four goals in 16 league appearances for the Blues in League Two before making his stay permanent the following summer under Paul Cook.
The Wallsend-born striker contributed a further three goals in 18 appearances in the first half of the Blues’ League Two title-winning season before being loaned out to Northampton Town for the second half of the campaign.
Smith went on to play 19 games for Bury during their penultimate season in the Football League before establishing himself as a clinical League One goalscorer with Rotherham United, where he twice tasted promotion to the Championship and scored a combined 52 goals in 188 league appearances.
Smith made the move to Sheffield Wednesday on a free transfer in June 2022 and has been hugely impressive for the South Yorkshire side. He netted 17 goals in 39 League One matches to inspire the club to promotion via the play-offs in his debut campaign and added a further four goals in 31 games to help the team to survival.
So far this season, he has scored three times in 14 matches while also providing two assists.
‘It was hands down the best goal of my career so far. If I wasn’t so tired I might have taken a touch, it was one of those that goes in the back of the net or over the stand,’ Smith said when reflecting on the winner against the Blues.
‘When the manager and his staff came in last year, everyone could see what he was trying to implement. I think this season things are starting to click into gear. We know what it means to play for this football club, and we want to keep pushing towards the top end of the table.’
Sky Sports Pundit Don Goodman said: ‘It may have gone unnoticed, but Smith was involved earlier in the move and was fouled as he flicked the ball round the corner to Josh Windass! Impressively, he picked himself up and was on hand to curl a once in a lifetime beauty into the top corner from 25 yards!’
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