Rio Ferdinand's unusual theory on reason Angel Di Maria flopped at Man Utd
Rio Ferdinand believes that Angel Di Maria failed at Manchester United because he did not want to be their star man.
The Argentine winger completed a sensational move to Old Trafford in 2014 from Real Madrid. The Red Devils splashed out a then-record £59.7million to sign him.
Despite a bright start, it did not work out for Di Maria at Man United. He scored just four goals in 32 appearances - albeit he did provide 12 assists - before leaving for French giants Paris Saint-Germain at a loss.
Ferdinand now believes that the pressure of being the Red Devils’ key man was too much for Di Maria to cope with. Speaking to BT Sport in 2020, he said: "He brings that co-star element. I think there's players that want to be the star, want to be the main man.
"I think this guy is a player that is happy playing back-up, being the co-star to the superstars. He's done it at Real Madrid with [Cristiano] Ronaldo, Argentina with [Lionel] Messi and now we're seeing it here with the guys [Kylian] Mbappe and Neymar.
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"Look at those stats, the most assists since 2015 I think it was, second only to Messi in the top five leagues and this guy is a fantastic footballer. It didn't work out for him at Manchester United, and I think there he was asked to be the creative force, the main man and that doesn't suit him."
Another United icon Wayne Rooney has also given his thoughts on Di Maria’s stint. He believes that life in the North West did not suit the Argentine, while a robbery at his home influenced his decision to quit Old Trafford.
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"He's a wonderful player," said Rooney in his column for The Sunday Times. “When he came to United I remember Louis van Gaal saying to the team: 'He is the only one who is allowed to dribble with the ball.'
"Angel works tirelessly on the pitch and his delivery, vision and awareness is brilliant. He could have been a major star at United but at the time we were going through a bit of a transition and it was tough for him to settle.
“He had young kids and lived a couple of houses down from me and someone tried to burgle him. I remember that really shook him and his family. From then on, really, you knew it was going to be tough for him and it was probably better for him to leave."
Since leaving Old Trafford, Di Maria played for PSG for seven seasons, winning five league titles. He had a season with Italian giants Juventus last season before returning to his former club Benfica in the summer. The now 36-year-old has been in sensational form for the Portuguese giants. He has 15 goals and 10 assists in all competitions this term.
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