Former Manchester United winger Angel Di Maria has finally laid bare the full, harrowing details of his disastrous 2014-15 season at Old Trafford, revealing that a toxic mix of a burglary at his family home, a falling out with manager Louis van Gaal, and不适应 to English life made him “hate being there.”
However, in a surprising twist of loyalty, the Argentine veteran insists he has “no regrets” about joining the Red Devils and still looks back fondly on the club’s supporters and staff.
Di Maria arrived in Manchester with a British record transfer fee of £59.7m on his shoulders, handed the iconic number seven shirt, and tasked with restoring the club to its former glory under Louis van Gaal .
But speaking to BBC Sport, the winger painted a picture of a dream that turned into a nightmare almost immediately.
‘The Negatives, Over and Over’
While Di Maria started brightly—scoring a memorable chip against Leicester City—the relationship with his manager soured rapidly.
“Things started really well. Everything was flowing,” Di Maria recalled. “Then I started to have issues with Van Gaal and from there everything fell apart.”
The World Cup winner claims Van Gaal’s man-management style wore him down, focusing exclusively on his flaws rather than his flashes of brilliance.
“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,” Di Maria said .
Van Gaal has since countered that he never specifically requested the signing, arguing that he tried Di Maria in multiple positions but could never find one where the Argentine was effective in his structured system .
‘Terror’ at the Dinner Table
The situation off the pitch was even more terrifying. In January 2015, while Di Maria was eating dinner with his wife, Jorgelina Cardoso, and his young daughter, thugs armed with scaffolding poles attempted to smash their way into the family’s Cheshire mansion.
According to police reports at the time, the gang tried to break down the patio doors of the £4 million property. The alarm scared them off, but the psychological damage was done .
“The break-in at my house,” Di Maria listed as a key reason for his departure. “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.”
He contrasted the incident with a similar robbery he experienced later in Paris: “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.”
His wife, Jorgelina, has also been vocal about her misery, previously describing the food as “disgusting” and the culture as isolating .
‘I Played as United on the PlayStation’
Despite the turmoil, Di Maria insists that his animosity was never aimed at the fabric of Manchester United itself—the fans, the stadiums, or the training ground staff.
“But when it comes to the Premier League, the atmosphere, life at the club, honestly, I was left with a really good feeling because there were great people inside the club who always treated me well, who always supported me,” he said.
In the most heartwarming segment of the interview, the veteran revealed the childhood dream that made the move so tempting in the first place.
“It was a decision I wanted to make. I wanted to go to United. The football, arriving at the stadiums, the atmosphere, the love from the fans, I don’t regret any of it,” he stated.
“Joining them was incredible. I played as Manchester United on the PlayStation. I used to play with (Wayne) Rooney and suddenly, he was beside me.”
After refusing to return for pre-season the following summer, Di Maria eventually left for Paris Saint-Germain for £44.3m, ending a spell that lasted just 12 months and produced only four goals .
While the statistics may label him a “flop,” Di Maria’s latest account suggests a player haunted by circumstance and a rigid manager, rather than a lack of affection for the famous red shirt.
