Next season’s stars: Kiko Macheda

Kiko Macheda has set out his stall to become an Old Trafford star.

His late winner against Aston Villa last April instantly made him an Old Trafford hero and thus the high standard was set. Yet this season he didn’t quite scale the heights expected of him as injury curtailed his plans. The young Italian almost became a hero against Chelsea when he hit a late goal but it wasn’t to be although he went put in some solid performances towards the end of the season.

Next season if he can stay injury free it will be a monumental one for him and I think he will rise to the occasion.

Last summer Sir Alex claimed,

“Macheda is top drawer, a hero in the making, just as Cristiano was,”

I’m not sure if he can reach Ronaldo’s heights he could become a star.

Sans Wayne Rooney, upfront is a position where a lot of us fans are concerned. There have been grumbles and groans about Dimitar Berbatov and his inability to deputise for Wayne Rooney so there is a vacancy for someone to fill in for our #10.

It maybe unfair to place so much expectation on the shoulders of one so young (Macheda is just 18) but he looks like he is developing to the stage where he is getting ready to become a full fledged member of the first team rather than just a fringe player (note I didn’t say starter!).

I have noticed he has a knack of looking better when he comes off the bench and he can adapt to the game’s pace almost instantly when he does so. He is obviously very raw but looks like he is more than capable of learning on the job. At times he makes the right run and finds himself in the right position like how he set up Nani’s goal against Tottenham but again this is at times and still can polish up on his game as he will need to consistantly do this before he can push for a permanent place in the first team.

Macheda introduced himself to the world against Villa and along with Danny Welbeck were touted as future stars. If we don’t sign a star striker, and I doubt we will, Macheda will have to step up when called upon. Obviously the likes of Diouf and Hernandez will be there to share the load but Macheda may find the eyes are on him.

His past exploits shows me he will be able to cope.