The name Federico Macheda is familiar to many English football fans, mainly for a match-winning strike against Aston Villa. After that game, United dans had extremely high hopes four him. he was dubbed the next Wayne Rooney. However, after his great start and a couple of good games after that, Macheda´s career quickly went downhill. Today we will talk about Federico Macheda, his career and what happened to him after his spell with Manchester United.
Before his time in England; Macheda played with the Lazio youth team in Italy. he joined Manchester United only 16 years of age in September 2007. He played with the u18s side and scored on his debut against Barnsley. He adjusted to the English u18s football quickly and in his first season, he became top scorer with 12 goals in 21 appearances. His great start in Manchester youth teams earned him a professional contract with Manchester United in August 2007. After that, he played mainly for the under 18s team while occasionally playing for the Reserve team. After a hattrick in a reserve team match against Newcastle, Macheda was picked as a substitute for the first team against Aston Villa in 5 of April 2009.
“That goal”
Almost nobody knew him before his debut. Which made it even tenser was that Liverpool moved two points clear at the top of the table in a game the day before after a win against Fulham 1-0. Manchester was 2-1 down when Alex Ferguson substituted Macheda in for Nani shortly after the hour mark. Cristiano Ronaldo managed to equalise when ten minutes were left. It was 3 minutes past stoppage time and United desperately needed a win to stay ahead of Liverpool. Then Macheda delivered, he received the ball with his back to goal on the edge of the penalty area, he turned around and curled a shot beyond the reach of Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel. Old Trafford erupted and Macheda rushed to celebrate with his father which was in the stand before being submerged under his teammates. According to the Telegraph, Alex Ferguson Manchester United manager said that: “It was one of those incredible moments, it has galvanised the whole club. I told him ‘well done’, but it’s important to keep his feet on the ground. He will need to handle lots of publicity over the next few days.”
On reflection, Macheda spoke with Espn.com on his thoughts of one of Manchester Unites most memorable moments. “My life changed that day and it has never been the same since. Nobody gave a f--- who I was before that goal but the day after I would go to the Trafford Centre and have 100 people around me. I enjoyed it at the start.” He then further adds that game remains the best football game if his life. After the game, he was on the front of every newspaper all around. He said that Alex Ferguson told him to remain on the ground and don’t get big-headed.
After the game, Macheda was on the benched the next two games. He didn’t come on against Porto in the Champions League. However, against Sunderland, he came on and scored the winning goal after only being on the pitch for one minute. Two winning goals in one week. Macheda made his first start against Everton in the FA Cup semi-final. He played well but failed to score.
The downhill road
Following the Success, Macheda did not start often and was occasionally substituted. His career then followed with many loan spells with teams like Sampdoria, Queens Park Rangers. VfB Stuttgart, Doncaster Rovers and Birmingham city. Macheda was then realised from Manchester and signed Cardiff City on a free transfer on 27 of May 2014. He played 36 games for United, scoring 6 goals and assisting 6. Macheda played below average for Cardiff and in 2016 he Joined Seria B side Novara and today he is still a Novara player.
Reflecting on his past in, Macheda said that not listening to Alex Ferguson was the “worst mistake of my life” according to the Mirror."Fergie wanted me to go on loan; I could see that was sensible. Many Premier League clubs came in for me including Everton and Sunderland, But I wanted to play in Italy, in Serie A. Fergie did not agree and said I should play in England, where he could keep an eye on me. He said he didn't have the same power in Italy. I insisted on Italy and that was the worst mistake of my life." Despite his declining career, Macheda is still remembered by many Manchester United supporters and will probably remain in that way for years to come.
Post by: Guðjón
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