United's initial £3.5m down payment plus extra based on performances was rejected by Leeds but increasing the money to £7m and agreeing to Danny Pugh going the other way looks likely to have sealed the deal.
Pugh's dad is a gymnastic coach and it will be interesting to hear what verbal gymnastics 'life-long-Leeds fan' Smith employs if he does eventually sign on the dotted line.
Argentinian centre-half Gabriel Heinze's arrival at Old Trafford, in a £6m transfer, moved closer on Saturday, when his club, Paris St-Germain, set up a £3.2m deal for the Nantes defender Sylvain Armand, who is seen as Heinze's replacement.