Former Manchester United midfielder Neil Webb says he feels Angel Di Maria should have stayed to fight it out at Old Trafford and admits he is surprised that the Argentina winger is set to move to Paris St. Germain.
‘It’s a bit of a surprise Angel Di Maria looks like he’ll be leaving Manchester United,’ Webb wrote on his Kicca page. ‘I thought the club would have held on to him but he obviously didn’t settle after a few personal problems and his house getting burgled. He didn’t feel safe in England which is unfortunate.’
Di Maria was pictured arriving in Qatar to undergo a medical for Paris and, given the circumstances, Webb feels United can make a good deal out of it and move forward.
‘United will lose around £12 -£15m for a 12 month purchase but look like they are prepared to take the loss,’ he said. ‘If they can replace him with a player of similar quality, someone with a bit of pace that can take on players, then I don’t see it much of a bad deal.’
‘I think he should have stayed another year but something is obviously not right behind the scenes. I heard he had to move out of his family home to an apartment with higher security and his form dipped remarkably during the season. It’s a strange decision after only one season but that’s football these days…’
United have reportedly agreed a fee of £44.1m for the player who was named the man of the match in last year’s Champions League Final. However, despite a bright start, Di Maria has failed to hit those heights consistently. United fans by and large seemed open to the player staying at the club to fight it out but reports that he had gone AWOL quickly evaporated any support he thought he had.