I felt at home — Man United flop explains reason for failure under Sir Alex Ferguson

Former Manchester United striker Frederico “Kiko” Macheda recently detailed why he flopped at the club, citing poor choices.

The 33-year-old currently plies his trade in the periphery of European football, Asteras Tripolis in the Greek professional league. His current level and the career he has had is a far cry from his early projections.

The Red Devils signed the Italian forward to their youth team after watching him shine with the Lazio set-up. He made his debut at 17 and scored a late winner against Aston Villa on April 5, 2009, a goal that signalled many more to come at the time. 

He showed initial promise before forcing a loan move away from the club against Sir Alex Ferguson's wishes. He signed for Sampdoria, where he flopped massively, failing to score a single goal at the club. That marked the start of his downfall. 

He went on more unsuccessful loans to Queens Park Rangers, Stuttgart, Doncaster Rovers, Birmingham, and Cardiff City before he was eventually released by the club. 

Now a veteran, Macheda looked back on what could have been. He took responsibility for failing to reach the expected heights, citing bad choices he made. 

“A mix of bad choices and unpreparedness for success, because when you’re there you feel like you’ll play there forever,” he told Calcio Mercato. 

“It’s a club that follows the growth of young players a lot; I felt at home. But I didn’t listen to the right people; I had insecurity problems and after a couple of loans, I started to doubt myself.”