Angel Di Maria: I left Manchester United 'to win things'
If a player can roast his former club, Angel Di Maria just dropped napalm on Manchester United, claiming he left, "not only to be happy but to win things."
To say the current Paris St. Germain winger’s memories of the club, along with manager Louis Van Gaal, are less than fond is an understatement.
Di Maria told BBC Sport that his inability to settle in Manchester falls primarily at the feet of the club (read: Van Gaal).
"It's not nice to say certain things, but it's more that they didn't let me settle properly than I couldn't settle,” Di Maria said.
“I don’t think it was my fault or the fault of my teammates … So I decided to leave, not only to be happy but to win things.”
Frustration was a common refrain for Angel Di Maria in Manchester.
Ouch. Man United broke the British transfer record when they ponied up for Di Maria in the summer of 2014, paying a whopping £59.7 million ($85 million) to Real Madrid for the Argentine. Their return on investment would make buying a house in 2006 look like an astute purchase.
Di Maria tallied just four goals and 11 assists in all competitions with the Red Devils, but to hear him tell it, a lack of consistency was culpable.
"I started a game in one position then the next game in another. I scored goals playing in one position, then suddenly the next game I was picked to play in a different position.”
Manchester United offloaded Di Maria as quickly as they could. PSG stepped forward with a £49.7 million ($70.7 million), and the Di Maria/Man United Era came to a merciful end just a year after it began.
And don’t think the current struggles of United, who presently sit sixth in the Premier League, are lost on Di Maria.
“I left and that team are still playing the same way. Out of European competitions, far from being champions of the Premier League.”
Those aren’t exactly the kinds of words you like to hear your record-breaking transfer say, regardless of his productivity. Over to you, LvG.
