It's not entirely uncommon for a professional soccer player to switch positions midseason, but such alterations typically require some form of back-and-forth dialogue between the head coach and the player involved.

Of course, if your coach is world-renowned Italy and A.C. Milan center back Alessandro Nesta, the player will probably just fall in line and listen up.

That was the situation for Futbol Club Cincinnati left back Blake Smith during his 2016 season at Miami FC, then of the North American Soccer League.

Around that time, Smith, a career winger with attacking tendencies, found himself as an odd man out in the midfield diamond formation Miami used under Nesta, the decorated Italian international considered one of the greatest defenders and center backs in world soccer history.

Nesta saw something in Smith, so rather than cast him away, Nesta began working Smith into the mix at left back for Miami.

"One day he just put me there in training," Smith said. "If Nesta's telling me I should play left back, I'm going to take his word for it and not question it."

Smith was a natural fit in Nesta's modern system, which allowed Smith to rollick on the flank and contribute to the attack as he had been accustomed to throughout his career.

Suffice it to say there was no need for a follow-up conversation.

With Nesta overseeing the development of Smith, a malleable talent, the player was able to hold down his spot in Miami's squad throughout 2016 and 2017.

Enter FC Cincinnati head coach Alan Koch. Smith's left-back journey with Miami would see him collide with FC Cincinnati in the quarterfinals of the 2017 U.S. Open Cup, a match Cincinnati won, 1-0.

"That’s kind of how Alan was able to see me (with Miami). He was very high on me," Smith said. "Alan told me, 'look, this is your spot to make it your own and come to the next level with us. It’s basically up to you if you’re willing to grasp it."

Months later, FC Cincinnati was still so impressed by Smith that Koch and his staff worked successfully to get Smith out of the remaining year on his Miami FC contract and brought him to the Queen City for the 2018 United Soccer League season.

Much like Smith's position switch, Cincinnati's acquisition of him proved fruitful. Despite still being relatively new to the position, Smith in 2018 has blended his attacking mindset with defensive principles to become one of the most reliable and effective FC Cincinnati players this season.

Smith's statistics speak to his success. Following Sunday's victory over Toronto FC II, he ranked fourth on the FC Cincinnati roster in starts (24), fifth in minutes played (2,095), and fourth in tackles (42).

Smith has a goal to his name and is tied with Emery Welshman and Corben Bone for second on the team in assists (4).

Numbers alone don't tell the full tale of Smith's role for FC Cincinnati as center back Forrest Lasso attested.

Lasso said even a discerning eye for the game would have trouble identifying Smith as a relatively new defender.

"He's done his job excellently this season," Lasso said. "The guy can play in all kinds of positions... He adds a ton. For the fullback position, the offensive side of the ball is pretty important."

Each day is a trial for Smith as he's in a competition for minutes and a place on the 2019 Major League Soccer roster, much like the rest of the FC Cincinnati roster.

In Smith's case, there's a good-natured battle for playing time with Pa Konate, a ballyhooed midseason acquisition from the Italian Serie A ranks.

So far, Smith appears to be winning that battle.

Konate's logged just two starts and three appearances since joining the club, and two of the appearances came in the immediate wake of a controversial red card assessed to Smith Aug. 25.

Konate's availability to the club has also been limited due to a holdup with his work visa after he arrived and recently-concluded international duty.

Smith's made the most of his opportunities during Konate's absences.

“A player like him that has played as a winger, he obviously has that attacking component to his game and you can see that every single time we’re playing,” Koch said. “Blake’s obviously played significant minutes for us, too, so if anybody questions why he’s playing, he shows it every single day in training. He’s shown it in games. He’s part of a group that’s had significant success so far this season. Is he underrated from that perspective? If people don’t think he should be starting then, yeah, he is underrated because he deserves to start."

Blake's embraced the competition with Konate, just as he embraced the idea of switching to left back when Nesta brought it to him.

"They (the team) need to bring in competition and that can either push somebody or make them go into a shell and intimidate somebody," Smith said. "For me, it's just keep doing my thing and just worry about myself. It's good to have competition like that. It's in the back of your mind that if you're not performing, yeah, there's somebody that's capable of coming in and performing, so, that's on your mind to a degree.

"For me, if I just focus on myself, hopefully, I won't have any issues."

The competition is far from over from Smith. Konate's one part of the equation, but the seemingly infinite pool of players FC Cincinnati could bring in this offseason is an everpresent consideration, too.

But Smith's not letting up now. His case for the MLS team in 2019 is as strong as anyone's in the FC Cincinnati dressing room.

He's also conscious of the role Nesta played in helping him advance to this point in his career.

"One-hundred percent – if (Nesta) wouldn't have forced me back to that position, Alan might not have wanted to bring me in as a left back for this year," Smith said. "I wouldn't be in this position. Who knows where I would be. Credit to Nesta for putting me back there and, at the same time, I had to work pretty hard to get to where I am."