It hasn’t been the best of starts to Louis Van Gaal’s tenure at Old Trafford, to say the very least. As if losing his first Premier League game at home to Swansea wasn’t bad enough, United were thrashed 4-0 by League One side MK Dons in the second round of the Capital One Cup last night.
There is one big positive to come out of yesterday though. No, it has nothing to do with the activities on the football pitch at the Stadium mk. It was the completion of the signing every United fan had been waiting for for so long – Angel Di Maria from Real Madrid. The Red Devils have smashed the British transfer record by shelling out £60 million for the Argentine winger, and he is expected to turn things around at the club.
Despite the torrid start to the campaign, the sense of excitement is back as United look to make a fresh start.
Here are 5 reasons why Manchester United fans will love Angel Di Maria:
1) He is top-quality.
To play in a club side with Cristiano Ronaldo and an international side with Lionel Messi and to yet stand out is no mean achievement. It is though, exactly what Di Maria has accomplished over the last few years. His lightning pace on the wings coupled with some great crossing and goalscoring will be like a breath of fresh air to United.
The Red Devils need a catalyst, a saviour, to pull them out of their current plight. The Argentine wizard may just be the man to do it.
2) He’s a genuine winger.
Now, this is a reason that may strike some readers as odd. But Manchester United have always been a crossing team, and their fans love to see a player marauding down the touchline and putting in an inch-perfect cross into the box. Di Maria is just that player. The club that has had the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and Ryan Giggs on their wings has seen a dearth of top-quality wide players in the recent past, but Di Maria’s arrival changes all that.
3) His quality doesn’t account for his passion.
Di Maria is a player who wants to be on the football pitch all the time. His decision to leave Real Madrid on account of less playing-time exemplifies that fact. And just because of his quality on the ball, he doesn’t compromise on his duties whilst off it. His constant running and closing down of opponents is sure to endear him to the United faithful before too long.
4) He brings with him the winning mentality.
Everyone associated with United is low-on-confidence at the moment. This is not only because of the poor start to the current season, but also due to the wretched last campaign, when they finished a lowly 7th. At the same time, Di Maria was busy winning the UEFA Champions League with Real Madrid, putting in a man-of-the-match performance in the final. Therefore, he will bring a much-needed sense of positivity and optimism to Old Trafford. The United fans will hope that he can put in performances similar to the ones he did at Madrid last season, so that the Red Devils can return to the top of English and European football before too long.
5) He is the costliest signing in Premier League history.
When a club spends £60 million on a player, the fans’ expectations are obviously high. The optimism generated through such a signing is tremendous. All the fans want Di Maria to do well, and their love-story with him has already begun even before he has kicked a ball. Parallels can be drawn to the Fernando Torres situation at Chelsea, who was the previous holder of the costliest Premier League signing at £50 million. Following his move to Stamford Bridge from Liverpool, it took Torres 14 games to score his first goal for the Blues. But the love that the fans had for him since his arrival hardly diminished during that period. The United fans, of course, will be hoping Di Maria doesn’t take quite that long to get off the mark.
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