Angel Di Maria has opened up on his disappointing spell at Manchester United and how former head coach Louis Van Gaal contributed to his early exit from the club.
The Argentine legend joined the Red Devils in a £59.7 million deal from Real Madrid in the summer of 2014 and despite an impressive start, things took a downward spiral and he left the club the following summer.
Di Maria scored three goals and provided four assists in his first six matches for the club, but a fallout with Van Gaal ultimately brought an end to his stint at the club.
“Things started really well, everything was flowing”, Di Maria said.
“Then I started to have issues with Van Gaal and from there everything fell apart.
“Like I said, I started really well. Everything was perfect. But then suddenly we started having lots of meetings about all the things I was doing wrong on the pitch.
“He never showed me what I was doing well, just the negatives, over and over. Eventually I got fed up”, the Argentine continued.
Di Maria was later dropped from the lineup later in the season, before he refused to join the club for preseason.
The 2022 World Cup winner eventually joined Paris Saint-Germain for around £44.3 million in 2015, putting an abrupt end to his spell in England.
“Life there was very different. It gets dark really early and then the cold started. Everything kept snowballing. There was also the break-in at my house”, Di Maria added.
“When all of that happens; when you are not playing, when things aren’t going well for you, when you have problems inside the club, it ends up affecting you a lot. It made me hate being there.
“I got robbed in Paris too and still stayed for another two or three years, because life there was good.
“In Manchester, everything just snowballed. I wanted to prioritise my family and that is why I left”, he concluded.
Di Maria also went on to play for the likes of Juventus and made his return to Benfica, before moving back to his boyhood club – Rosario Central last summer.
Olakitan is a young writer with a strong passion for sports, having gained experience with IndyPress and Nimelssa Press. His enthusiasm for sports inspired him to cover events both within his school and beyond. With a deep understanding of the game and a refined skillset, he brings sports coverage to a broad, global audience in a way that’s engaging and accessible.
