The former Lazio striker Federico Macheda has opened the doors of him returning to the Italian club one day. The Manchester United striker is currently on loan at the German club Stuttgart till the end of the season in the hope of getting some first-team football.

This is widely regarded as the last chance for Macheda in his attempts to impress the manager Sir Alex Ferguson. Macheda was a bright 18-year-old who came onto the scene back in 2009 to devastating effect, but he has produced very little since then. Macheda was brought from Italian football as a teenager to join the Manchester United youth setup.

Macheda has been back to Italy once on a loan deal with Sampdoria, but it was not very helpful for the player in his hopes of getting experience as he spent most of the time on the bench. His previous loan spell with QPR also ended in a disaster. Due to these unproductive loan spells, Macheda has fallen way down the pecking order at Manchester United.

If he does not impress at Stuttgart, then he could be set for an exit from Old Trafford – the latest odds on a move away online are down to evens. The 21-year-old has made four appearances for Stuttgart since moving on a loan deal, but he is yet to open his account.

“I left Lazio when I was very young. I’d like to go back there one day,” said the 21-year-old. Macheda had a tough time finding the club suitable for him to play on a loan deal till the end of the season. He would have stayed at Old Trafford had it not been for the intervention from Stuttgart in the final few days of the January transfer window. Stuttgart are currently struggling in the German Bundesliga. They are 14th in the table and have just two wins in the last five matches.