Testing Ground
Style of Play
Former head coach Octavio Zambrano on Smith's early years at LA Galaxy
Considered to be one of the greatest and most complete strikers of all time, Smith is known for several qualities that defined his reputation which includes an exceptional pace, high work-rate, remarkable dribbling skills, an unmatched goalscoring prowess, as well as excellent overall vision and creativity, with former Manchester United head coach Sir Alex Ferguson describing Smith as "the most complete of all the strikers I've had", adding, "From what I've seen, some strikers can only do a certain set of things while others can do their own set of things only and there's Smith who can essentially do almost everything a striker needs to in one go". In addition, with a height of 1.80 metres, his relatively tall stature also allowed Smith to occasionally function as a "target man" with a knack for scoring close-range headers and in spite of his physical attributes Smith nonetheless proved to be a quick and agile striker able to both outrun his opponents and place himself in ideal positions. Moreover, Smith is also widely regarded for his excellent first touches and perfect composure, both of which made him a press-resistant player who rarely loses the ball to opponents who tend to man-mark him rather often. Former Brazil and Bayern Munich defender Lúcio, who faced Smith in the 2002 FIFA World Cup Final, described him as one of his most difficult opponents ever, stating, "He is always on the move and you never really know when he was about to shoot the ball or not. Quite simply, he's very unpredictable and to even counter him you always have to think many steps ahead which is already a lot to do in itself". A dedicated student of the Total Football system and philosophy, despite being mostly known for his role as a forward, Smith also occasionally experimented as a winger, a second striker, an attacking midfielder, or even as a deep-lying playmaker in a more central position.
Having scored a season's average of an impressive forty goals while also playing a season's average of thirty-four matches over the course of his later playing years, Smith has also received much applause and credit for his longevity especially given he was able to almost match the goalscoring rates of rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi with both players being at least several years younger than Smith who by then was already into his thirties. Regarding this, Smith has credited a mix of an "appropriate and efficient training regimen" and a "strict but healthy diet" in allowing him to maintain an almost consistent performance at the highest level even into his thirties whereas some otherwise saw a gradual decline in form as they aged. In addition, playing under the somewhat defensive style of Diego Simeone crucially allowed Smith to conserve his energy as he aged while otherwise utilising most of his energy in short bursts hence his ability to score the usual amount of goals even in his later years. In this, his preference for mostly walking slowly on the pitch before suddenly sprinting with rapid pace led some pundits to liken his playing style at Atlético Madrid to a cheetah, a comparison that head coach Diego Simeone even supported, having once said, "Undoubtedly, if the pitch was like a jungle, Guillermo (William) would be our cheetah silently walking and prowling about before suddenly bursting into life almost immediately once he saw his prey who will find it really hard to outrun him. For us, a goal being scored by him is like a cheetah having finally caught its prey". In addition to his offensive capabilities, Smith has received much credit from teammates and pundits for his defensive work in spite of his traditional role as a forward whereby he would often make well-timed tackles and precise interceptions whenever the opposition team is in possession of the ball while also being actively involved in pressing opponents up high on the pitch in order to immediately win the ball back and create a goalscoring opportunity right away near the opposition's penalty area. Aside from this, Smith is also well-known for his tendency to drop deep into the midfield area where he usually establishes strong link-up plays with his teammates before proceeding to carry the ball forward past opposition defenders. A renowned playmaker in his own right, Smith is also known for his almost equally high assist tally. In this, Smith has received much praise for his openness to assisting in goals rather than just scoring them via his natural playmaking abilities including a combination of reliable and accurate passes, excellent positioning, and strategic off-the-ball movements which generally allows him to orchestrate attacks and create goalscoring chances somewhat regularly.
Former England footballer Rio Ferdinand on Smith's professionalism
Aside from his widely-acclaimed footballing prowess, Smith is perhaps most well known for his somewhat extreme sense of professionalism and exemplary work ethic, traits that would come to mark his footballing career along with his distinction of having a somewhat "clean" and relatively "unproblematic" reputation which Smith himself admitted to be both natural and deliberate, stating, "When I realised that I have a younger sister who's really into football and who's definitely going to be looking up to me as inspiration, I knew that by all means necessary I have to set an example and be a good role model for her so that she could truly love and appreciate the game especially through someone familiar which is what I strove to be". In 2017, former Manchester United and England teammate Wayne Rooney described Smith as "every bit of a perfectionist, a total disciplinarian, and a 100% type of an outstanding player", adding, "Whenever a big match comes up, out of all the eleven men on the field, he (Smith) will definitely be the most focused and composed man of them all". Moreover, former England and Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand, who once publicly criticised the perceived laziness and laid-back attitude shown by the England internationals during the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, has also heaped much praise on the former Manchester United forward, stating, "Out of all the guys that were in Germany back then for the World Cup, I think he (Smith) was probably the only one that had the game 100% in his mind, not to mention, he had just won one four years back and I think that by all accounts he had that undeniable sense of drive and passion of winning a second one right after the first, something that he was definitely not going to take very lightly until it's all said and done". Accordingly, former England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson also recounted Smith's overall behaviour during the last few training sessions for the World Cup in Germany, adding how the former England star was "the first to come and the last to leave" during most training sessions and that the latter "always gave his 100%, or perhaps 105%, each time without fail". Meanwhile, during an appearance on The Graham Norton Show in 2022, Smith publicly revealed a small-sized tattoo on the side of his right arm on which is inscribed a phrase in Spanish that reads "Élite y compuesto" which roughly translates to "Elite and composed", reportedly his two main footballing philosophies, namely putting a consistent top-notch performance and remaining calm and composed, thereby averting any nervous breakdowns or the sort.
In line with his most famous nickname of "The General", throughout much of his playing years, Smith came to acquire a well-known reputation for possessing a somewhat formidable and commanding presence on the pitch as well as a naturally talented and assertive leader with former England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson describing the former as "someone naturally born to be a leader with his own set of loyal followers and subordinates". In particular, during important and high stakes matches such as a World Cup final, Smith was known for his "calm and reasonable yet aggressive and uncompromising" demeanour during dressing room meetings with former England teammate Wayne Rooney once stating, "In most cases, if you did well then you'll receive the most praises you'll ever get in your life but if you did badly then you'll get the most berating and scolding you'll ever get in your life instead". Similarly, former United States teammate Landon Donovan, recounting Smith's final dressing room speech just prior to the 2002 FIFA World Cup Final against Brazil, said, "For all the many years I spent with the national team, that dressing room speech was probably the only time I ever felt 100% sure about something in a very long time". In a 2017 BBC Sport interview, Smith admitted that his hardline approach as captain made him an "enemy of some guys who didn't take it too well" but asserted that the results which included back-to-back World Cup and Euros triumph were otherwise indicators for the success of his captaincy, stating, "Opinions may vary as to whether my style as a captain was warranted or not but in regards to how harsh I was as one, I just wanted to make it clear that the harshest of my criticisms were never personal and in most cases only slackers and absolute brats in the team only ever get the harshest of them all and not necessarily those who gave their all but couldn't necessarily get it all right". Nonetheless, his brand of professionalism and an admirable character made Smith a "mentor" to younger and upcoming talents at the clubs that he played namely Manchester United players Marcus Rashford and Jonny Evans as well as Atlético Madrid's Antoine Griezmann who is considered by some to be Smith's "protégé".
As of 2024, Smith is just one of only nine footballers in history to have won the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League, and the Ballon d'Or. Others on the list include Johan Cruyff, Gerd Müller, Franz Beckenbauer, Paolo Rossi, Zinedine Zidane, as well as compatriots Bobby Charlton and Harry Kane.