5 possible replacements for Angel Di Maria at Manchester United
Angel Di Maria celebrating his debut goal for Manchester United last seasonHis arrival at Manchester United last season was hailed to be one of the biggest deals pulled off by the Premier League club. Penning down a five-year contract with the Red Devils for a record British signing fee of £59.7million, Di Maria’s entry into the club was seen as the perfect silver lining that would ward off those clouds of gloom that had settled over Manchester’s renowned club since the Moyes Saga.And no higher honour could have been bestowed on him than by presenting him with the No. 7 jersey, previously worn by great names at the team such as George Best, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, among others.Fast-forward a year later – a traumatic break-in experience, an injury-filled season and confusion over his role as part of manager Louis Van Gaal’s philosophy, meant that Di Maria decided to dissociate with the team in the most conspicuous of manners – he went missing!He failed to show up for the team’s pre-season friendly tour to the United States, causing Van Gaal to admit that he has no clue about his star player’s whereabouts. Now a mere formality away from signing a deal with Ligue 1’s Paris Saint-Germain, Di Maria’s vanishing act has left a bitter taste in the mouth of not only the team’s management and staff, but of fans from across the world.Van Gaal has sounded out a call stating that “creative players” is who he is looking for and we take a look at the top five players who can fill in this void left by Angel Di Maria.
#1 Pedro
Pedro Eliezer Rodriguez Ledesma, or Pedro as he is commonly known, seems to be a deal that is most likely to go through for Manchester United. Playing as a forward or winger for the Spanish national football team and La Liga’s Barcelona, Pedro is known for his intuitive runs that creates those much needed pockets of spaces for the other players in the team.
A keen student of the game with pace on his side, it is no wonder that ex-Barca coach Pep Guardiola had this to say about him: “If Pedro was Brazilian, he’d be called Pedrinho and we wouldn’t have enough money to afford him.”
Even though his playing time for Barcelona has dropped drastically since the forming of the Holy Trinity of Messi, Suarez and Neymar, Pedro has been involved in quite a number of Messi’s goals, forming a winning bond with the striker. If the £22m deal does go forward, Manchester United may just have solved their creative midfielder woes with a player who could help a striker of Rooney’s stature come into his own again.