www.mancunianopinion..in/2015/05/a-veterans-recipe-for-greater-di-maria.html?m=1

Manchester United legend, Paul Scholes has given a down to earth opinion on Angel Di Maria’s first season at Old Trafford. The 26-year-old Argentine switched from Real Madrid in what is about the most expensive deal in the history of the English Premier League and although few pundits wondered why he commanded as much as £59.7m, many couldn’t agree more with Manchester United’s decision to bring him on after a wonderful season with the Spanish giants that culminated in clinching the tenth Champions League title. However, the major reason why many Old Trafford faithful rooted for the Di Maria deal was the urgent need to have a playmaker, the standard or something close to Cristiano Ronaldo or even Eric Cantona.

Unfortunately, the fans would be treated to a rude shock when their poster boy got so shy that he couldn’t take on even the most vulnerable defenders in the Premier League. If he found it hard to blend into the play style at Manchester, he would have been forgiven but after a breath-taking display in his first home game against the Queens Park Rangers the fan’s appetite was already whet and his sudden dip in form left the fans shouting blue murder.

The hitherto flamboyant winger could only complete seven starts for the Red Devils and as if that wasn’t enough, he earned himself an expulsion in the FA Cup quarter-final defeat to arch-rivals, Arsenal. Manchester United sure made some mistakes in that match but Di Maria was the man who got sent off and hence he gets the largest chunk of the blame.

Scholes in his column in the Independent noted that despite a three goal haul in five games, the Premier League most expensive player failed to live up to what was least expected of him. He however maintained that Louis van Gaal and the board must do all they can to keep the Argentine on board seeing as Paris Saint-Germain have resumed their interest in the winger’s services.

The frustrations of the veteran midfielder have been visibly shared by many pundits including yours sincerely and it is conspicuous that the former Real Madrid star had it tough settling down into life at the theatre of dreams, but it would do him a lot of good if he took the time to access his first season at the club and commit to a quick recovery plan to get back to his former level.

He remains the best player in the 2014 Champions League final and without his brilliance, the La Decima would still remain a mirage hence nothing would be nicer than a regular display of such committed and purposeful style of play to repay Manchester United and its faithful for the trust reposed in him.

On a final note, the Red Devils are likely to be competing in next season’s Champions League and as such could use some quality, here is where Di Maria comes in. It is now left to the coaching staff and the player to work together to bring out the quality that attracted half of the club’s war chest last season and perhaps a lot more if he had joined Paris Saint-Germain.