Federico Macheda Match Review : New England Revolution 1 Manchester United 4

New England Revolution 1 Manchester United 4

Gillette Stadium, Foxborough – Att: 51, 523

Federico Macheda staked an early claim for a return to Manchester United’s Premier League plans with two goals in six minutes to seal victory against New England Revolution in Foxborough.

Federico Macheda

Macheda, who endured a goalless six-month loan spell at Sampdoria last season, could yet be loaned out again by Sir Alex Ferguson this season with the United manager keen for the 19-year-old to gain more experience away from Old Trafford.

But after seeing Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov both miss clear chances to score in the first-half at the Gillette Stadium, the stunning home of NFL giants New England Patriots, goals by Macheda and Michael owen ensured a winning start for United on their five-game tour of the United States.

Ji-sung Park’s close range goal from Ryan Giggs’s pass on 80 minutes stretched United’s winning margin further in front of 51,523 spectators – a record attendance for a soccer game at the stadium.

Just 47 days after United’s Champions League final defeat against Barcelona at Wembley, Ferguson’s team returned to action against a Revolution outfit currently marooned at the foot of the MLS Eastern Conference.

Federico Macheda

The home side’s lack of pedigree was evident from the outset as United, with £15m summer signing Ashley Young making his debut on the left wing, dominated possession and created the only clear chances.

Rooney headed a Nani cross over the bar from close range on 18 minutes before aiming to repeat his overhead goal against Manchester City last season, with less spectacular results, sixteen minutes later.

Revolution midfielder Benny Feilhaber forced a solid save from Anders Lindegaard on a rare foray forward, but United should have taken the lead before the break when Berbatov wasted a golden chance from six yards.

The Bulgarian forward, who failed to make the substitutes’ bench against Barcelona at Wembley, was given a clear scoring chance when Fabio da Silva pulled the ball back from the touchline on 41 minutes.

But Berbatov somehow failed to score as he directed his shot straight at goalkeeper Matt Reis, who saved the strike with his legs.

Berbatov and Rooney then made way for Owen and Macheda at the start of the second-half and the substitutes both found themselves on the scoresheet within ten minutes of the restart.

Owen opened the scoring for United on 50 minutes when he received Michael Carrick’s pass inside the penalty area before guiding a right-foot strike into the far corner from six yards.

And Macheda, whose progress has stalled since he exploded onto the scene as a 17-year-old in April 2009, displayed similar calmness in front of goal when he converted Carrick’s pass from close range four minutes later.

Kenny Mansally pulled one back for the Revolution on 56 minutes when he inadvertently diverted Feilhaber’s free-kick past Lindegaard.

Federico Macheda

But Macheda secured the win for United when he claimed his second goal on the hour with a far post strike from Rafael da Silva’s cross before Park netted a fourth in the closing stages.

Having opened their American tour with a victory, United now fly to Seattle on Thursday ahead of next Wednesday’s encounter with Seattle Sounders at Centurylink Field.

Federico Macheda

Manchester United (4-4-2): Lindegaard; Rafael, Evans, Vidic (Ferdinand, 46), Fabio; Nani (Giggs, 67), Carrick (Park, 75), Anderson (Diouf, 75), Young (Obertan, 67); Berbatov (Macheda, 46), Rooney (Owen, 46). Subs: Johnstone (g).

Get To Know Fedrico Macheda

Federico Macheda

Federico Macheda

Birthdate:	22 Aug 1991
Birthplace:	Rome
Position:	Striker
Appearances	28
Goals Scored	4
Joined United:
United Debut:	5 April 2009 v Aston Villa (H)
International:	Italy U21

Federico Macheda

Federico Macheda became an instant Old Trafford hero when he scored a stunning injury-time winner on his debut against Aston Villa in April 2009.Aged just 17, the young Italian told MUTV it was "the best day of my life".

But while that goal heralded Macheda's arrival on the biggest stage, his prowess in front of goal has been apparent ever since he arrived at United in September 2007. Indeed, just six days before his Villa winner, the boy they call "Kiko" netted a hat-trick for the Reserves in a thrilling 3-3 draw at St James' Park.

Formerly a member of Lazio's youth system, Macheda signed professional forms on 22 August 2008. A powerful forward with a
natural eye for goal, he was born in Rome and is regarded in Italy as one of the most promising prospects of his generation.

Having relocated to England to further his career, Macheda quickly moved up the ranks at United. He started out in Paul McGuinness' Under-18s side, before becoming a regular in the Reserves.

He began the 2008/09 campaign with a fine goalscoring run in the youth team and quickly translated that to Reserve team football.

His strength on the ball, positional sense in the box and clinical finishing didn't go unnoticed at the very top: Sir Alex Ferguson handed him a Champions League squad number midway through the 2008/09 campaign and then showed stunning judgement to introduce him against Aston Villa just when the Reds needed a goal most.

Federico Macheda

Federico Macheda, in his own words..."I am very proud to call myself a Manchester United player. You’re playing for probably the best team in the world. When I came here it was amazing. It’s so different to Italy. In Italy, you are completely separate from the first-team. You’re not even on the same training ground. Here, you see the players every day, speak to them, you train on the pitches near them and you eat in the canteen together."

Federico Macheda, in the words of others...

"The young boy Macheda is progressing exceptionally well in the youth team and Reserves. He's a big lad now, he's improved

physical. He's been doing fantastically well and we're really pleased with him." Sir Alex Ferguson

Federico Macheda

Just six days later, the Italian's stock grew further as he reprised his match-winner status when it mattered most. Within a minute of entering the fray against Sunderland, with United chasing a winner, Macheda diverted home a vital winner to further aid the Reds' defence of the Premier League title.

Sadly, injuries hampered Kiko's 2009/10, restricting him to just 10 first-team appearances (five starts, five substitute appearances). One of those was as an impact sub against Chelsea in the league – his introduction changed the game and the Italian even netted a late consolation goal. But it was for the Reserves where Macheda made the biggest mark in 09/10, scoring four goals in eight appearances as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's team marched to league and playoff glory.

Reserves & Youth Honours
Reserves League North: 2009/10
Reserves national playoff: 2009/10
Northern Ireland Milk Cup: 2008
Manchester Senior Cup: 2007/08

Twelve more first-team appearances – and another stunning strike against Aston Villa – followed at the start of 2010/11, before Macheda returned to his homeland on loan at Sampdoria until the end of the season. Kiko made 14 appearances for the Serie A outfit but was unable to prevent them from being relegated.

2011/12 Statistics
TEAM	Competition	GS	SB	G	A	SH	SG	FC	FS	YC	RC
Manchester United	MLS	0	1	0	0	1	1	0	1	0	0
Manchester United	Prem	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Manchester United	CC	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Manchester United	WFC	0	2	2	0	6	5	0	1	0	0
Season Totals		1	3	2	0	7	6	1	2	0	0

2010/11 Statistics
TEAM	Competition	GS	SB	G	A	SH	SG	FC	FS	YC	RC
Sampdoria	Ita Cup	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Manchester United	CC	2	1	0	1	6	3	4	1	0	0
Manchester United	Prem	2	5	1	0	1	1	5	4	0	0
Manchester United	MLS	1	0	2	1	2	2	0	0	0	0
Sampdoria	Serie A	3	11	0	0	11	4	22	4	2	0
Manchester United	UCL	1	1	0	1	1	1	3	0	0	0
Season Totals		11	18	4	3	21	11	34	9	2	0

2009/10 Statistics
TEAM	Competition	GS	SB	G	A	SH	SG	FC	FS	YC	RC
Manchester United	UCL	2	0	0	0	8	2	5	1	1	0
Manchester United	Prem	1	4	1	1	3	1	4	1	0	0
Manchester United	CC	2	1	0	0	2	1	2	1	0	0
Season Totals		5	5	1	1	13	4	11	3	1	0

2008/09 Statistics
TEAM	Competition	GS	SB	G	A	SH	SG	FC	FS	YC	RC
Manchester United	FAC	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0
Manchester United	Prem	2	2	2	1	6	3	3	5	2	0
Manchester United	UCL	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Glossary

GS: Games Started, SB: Used as Substitute, G: Goals, A: Assists, SH: Shots, SG: Shots on goal, YC: Yellow Cards, RC: Red Cards, FC: Fouls Committed, FS: Fouls Suffered, SV: Saves, OF: Offsides, W: Wins, D: Draws, L: Losses

2008/09 APPEARANCES
Date	Team	Opponent	Competition	Result	Appearance	G	A	SH	SG	FC	FS	YC	RC
24/05 2009	Man Utd	A- Hull	Prem	W 0-1	Started	0	1	3	1	1	2	0	0
02/05 2009	Man Utd	A- M Man Utd H- Tottenham iddlesboro	Prem	W 0-2	Off 55 min	0	0	1	0	2	2	1	0
25/04 2009	Man Utd	H- Tottenham	Prem	W 5-2	Unused Substitute
19/04 2009	Man Utd	H- Everton	FAC	L 0-0	Off 90 min	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0
15/04 2009	Man Utd	A- FC Porto	UCL	W 0-1	Unused Substitute
11/04 2009	Man Utd	A- Sunderland	Prem	W 1-2	On 74	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	0
07/04 2009	Man Utd	H- FC Porto	UCL	D 2-2	Unused Substitute
05/04 2009	Man Utd	H- Aston Villa	Prem	W 3-2	On 60	1	0	1	1	0	1	1	0
2008/09 Season Totals				Starts: 3  •  Sub: 2		2	1	7	3	4	5	2	0

2009/10 APPEARANCES
Date	Team	Opponent	Competition	Result	Appearance	G	A	SH	SG	FC	FS	YC	RC
09/05 2010	Man Utd	H- Stoke	Prem	W 4-0	On 61	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
02/05 2010	Man Utd	A- Sunderland	Prem	W 0-1	Unused Substitute
24/04 2010	Man Utd	H- Tottenham	Prem	W 3-1	On 79	0	1	1	0	2	0	0	0
11/04 2010	Man Utd	A- Blackburn	Prem	D 0-0	Off 65 min	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0
07/04 2010	Man Utd	H- Bayern	UCL	W 3-2	Unused Substitute
03/04 2010	Man Utd	H- Chelsea	Prem	L 1-2	On 71	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	0
27/03 2010	Man Utd	A- Bolton	Prem	W 0-4	On 84	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
01/12 2009	Man Utd	H- Tottenham	CC	W 2-0	On 61	0	0	1	0	0	1	0	0
25/11 2009	Man Utd	H- Besiktas	UCL	L 0-1	Started	0	0	5	1	4	1	0	0
03/11 2009	Man Utd	H- CSKA Moscow	UCL	D 3-3	Off 81 min	0	0	3	1	1	0	1	0
27/10 2009	Man Utd	A- Barnsley	CC	W 0-2	Started	0	0	1	1	2	0	0	0
21/10 2009	Man Utd	A- CSKA Moscow	UCL	W 0-1	Unused Substitute
17/10 2009	Man Utd	H- Bolton	Prem	W 2-1	Unused Substitute
23/09 2009	Man Utd	H- Wolves	CC	W 1-0	Off 30 min	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2009/10 Season Totals				Starts: 5  •  Sub: 5		1	1	13	4	11	3	1	0

Glossary

G: Goals, A: Assists, SH: Shots, SG: Shots on goal, YC: Yellow Cards, RC: Red Cards, FC: Fouls Commited, FS: Fouls Suffered, SV: Saves, OF: Offsides

Javier Hernandez Chicharito And Federico Macheda Preview Match MLS All-Stars 2 Manchester United 5

MLS ALL-STARS – 2

MANCHESTER UNITED – 5

Attendance: 70,728

Javier Hernandez marked his Manchester United debut with a stunning goal as Sir Alex Ferguson’s team cruised to a 5-2 victory against the MLS All-Stars in Houston.

Hernandez, a £7m signing from Mexican outfit Chivas de Guadalajara, lobbed the ball over goalkeeper Nick Rimando from 20 yards to complete United’s emphatic win.

The Mexico striker, nicknamed Chicharito, looked set to be upstaged by 18-year-old Federico Macheda after the Italian scored twice inside the opening 12 minutes to give United a commanding lead.

But Hernandez rewarded the sizeable Mexican turn-out inside the Reliant Stadium by scoring his first goal in a United shirt six minutes from full-time.

With Hernandez only meeting his new team-mates for the first time on Monday, Ferguson opted to start the game with his new signing on the bench.

If it was meant as a challenge to Macheda, then it certainly had the desired effect in the first-half, with the Italian teenager scoring twice in the early stages.

Macheda, who does not celebrate his 19th birthday until next month, endured a frustrating campaign last term, making just ten appearances due to a series of injuries.

Ferguson had claimed 12 months ago that last season could be a breakthrough year for the young forward, but a year on, Macheda must now prove he can fight off the challenge of Hernandez to rival Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Michael Owen for first-team football.

He made the perfect start in the Reliant, however, by giving United the lead inside 22 seconds.
A sloppy back-pass by All-Stars full-back Kevin Alston was intercepted by Macheda and the striker calmly slotted the ball past goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts to give United the lead.

United, beaten by Kansas City Wizards on Sunday, were clearly determined to bounce back with a victory and their impressive start was rewarded when Macheda scored again on 12 minutes.

The All-Stars, a select XI assembled from a vote of fans of the 16 MLS franchises, only had a matter of days to prepare for the game and it showed as their lack of defensive understanding led to Macheda jumping unmarked to head Nani’s corner past Ricketts from six yards.

Bruce Arena’s All-Stars fought back and former Aston Villa forward Juan Pablo Angel had a 20-yard free-kick tipped over by Edwin van der Sar before sending a near post shot inches over the crossbar.
Van der Sar then saved well from Marco Pappa at the near post before Macheda spurned a golden chance to make it 3-0 on 37 minutes.

Released by Ryan Giggs, Macheda could only guide his angled shot wide of the past. Moments later, Darren Fletcher rattled crossbar following a one-two with substitute Tom Cleverley, a replacement for the injured Gabriel Obertan.

The All-Stars stepped up a gear in the second-half, though, and substitute Brian Ching halved the deficit with a header from David Ferreira’s 64th minute corner.

United responded well, however, and Darron Gibson scored a 20-yard free-kick following a foul on Hernandez to restore the English team’s two-goal advantage.

Three minutes later, Cleverley made it 4-1 with a close range strike after being teed up by Darren Fletcher.
The goal that most of the stadium had come to see arrived on 84 minute, though, when Hernandez ran onto Paul Scholes’s long-pass before guiding the ball over the helpless Rimando.

MLS ALL-STARS (4-5-1): Ricketts (Rimando h-t); Olave (Gonzalez h-t), Alston (De Rosario 74), Marshall (Conde 63), Pearce (Donovan 74); Le Toux (Convey h-t), Morales (Moreno 63), Joseph (Davis 74), Barros-Schelotto (Ferreira h-t), Pappa (Larentowicz h-t); Angel (Ching h-t). Subs: Buddle. Goal: Ching (64), De Rosario (90).

MANCHESTER UNITED (4-3-3): Van der Sar; Rafael, Brown, J. Evans, Fabio (Scholes 72); O’Shea, Fletcher, Giggs (Gibson 52); Nani (Hernandez 62), Macheda (Welbeck 62), Obertan (Cleverley 23). Subs: Kuszczak (g), Amos (g), Scholes, Berbatov, De Laet, Diouf, C. Evans, Smalling. Goals: Macheda (1, 12), Gibson (70), Cleverley (73), Hernandez (84). Booked: J. Evans, Scholes
Referee: Jorge Gonzalez (USA)

Too much, too young for Federico Macheda at Manchester United?

Two questions always accompany any mention of Federico Macheda and his stop-start career at Manchester United.

The first centres on when, or if, the Italian will fulfil his potential and that is swiftly followed by the other, which goes along the lines of, ‘Is he really still a teenager?’

Having exploded onto the scene at Old Trafford with a dramatic late winner against Aston Villa as a 17-year-old substitute in Apr 2009, Macheda has since made sporadic blips on the radar before disappearing beneath the surface for frustrating long periods.

Since that goal against Villa, Macheda has made 26 further appearances for United, with three more goals added to his account, yet he remains an enigma.

Injury and a six-month loan spell at Sampdoria last season, which proved disastrous with Macheda failing to score a single goal as Samp were relegated from Serie A, have interrupted his progress at Old Trafford.

But the 19-year-old offered a reminder of his potential by scoring twice as a substitute in United’s 4-1 victory against New England Revolution in the opening game of the club’s tour of the United States.

Both were six-yard box finishes, crisp, well-taken goals that are the hallmark of any natural goalscorer.
Macheda can also be clumsy, headstrong and seemingly clueless about the offside rule, however, and the flaws in his game continue to place a question mark over his immediate future at United.

Consider that Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and Dimitar Berbatov will be Sir Alex Ferguson’s three front-line strikers this season, the jostling behind that trio to become fourth in line is intensifying.

Aside from Macheda, Ferguson also has Michael Owen, Danny Welbeck and Mame Biram Diouf and, clearly, seven into four does not go.

Having signed a new one-year contract earlier this summer. Owen will continue to be Ferguson’s wildcard on the bench, the man with the pedigree and ability to save or win games in the closing stages.

So Macheda must see off the challenge of Welbeck and Diouf to avoid another loan spell away from Old Trafford in the coming campaign.

Welbeck, who made his full England debut against Ghana last season following a successful loan at Sunderland, has returned to United and will link up with the squad in Seattle this weekend.

Diouf, who had an unproductive year on loan at Blackburn, is most likely to find himself the odd-man out among the three youngsters.

But Macheda’s ability to score goals in the tightest situations might just give him the edge over Welbeck, whose early season form at Sunderland tailed off due to injury last term.

Whether Macheda will meet the challenge is another matter, though. He is rated highly by Ferguson, but he starred in pre-season last summer before failing to grasp his chance once the season started.

The same may happen again, but then we should remember he is still only 19.

Macheda might appear to have been around for years, but he is still only a rookie and reminding people of might be a valuable exercise.