Following the arrival of 17 players during this summer's transfer window, Millwall have so far endured a mixed start to the season, with the South London club picking up nine points from a possible 18 in their first six games.

Despite this slow start to their Championship campaign, one of their new recruits, in the form of towering frontman Matt Smith, has made a positive start to the season since signing from fellow capital-based club QPR.

Head of recruitment, Alex Aldridge, recently confirmed Smith had been on Millwall's radar for some time, telling London News Online they'd tried to sign him twice before.

We take a look at THREE reasons why this persistent approach has proved to be a good move for the striker so far ...

Aerial presence 

Following the departure of club legend Steve Morrison, Lions manager Neil Harris moved quickly to secure the services of Smith from QPR, with the six foot six inch striker providing a brilliant replacement for the aerial presence that was lost up front following Morrison's departure to Shrewsbury on loan.

Given that the club have chased the signature of the big man since the summer of last season, it is no surprise that he jumped at the chance to join the Lions.

Fits the style of play

Millwall are well known for their direct style of play, with the team's biggest attacking threats being provided from set pieces, long balls and crosses.

Smith will only prove beneficial to this approach, particularly from set pieces, with the striker combined with defender Jake Cooper providing two goalscoring threats from corners and free kicks. A scoring method that will prove useful for the Lions in games that are cagey.

In his prime

At the age of 30, Smith is currently in his 'prime' years as a professional, meaning that if the right service is provided to him, he can bring the best out of both himself and his teammates.

And this is something that has so far proved to have been the case with the striker already contributing two goals and one assist in his first six Championship games.