Angel Di Maria has doubled down on his previous claim that former Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal is the worst manager he has ever worked under.
The 36-year-old winger has enjoyed a glittering career that has seen him play for Rosario Central, Benfica, Real Madrid, United, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus.
He has been a hit for most of those teams but struggled at United, where he scored just four goals in 32 games during the 2014-15 season.
Di Maria has repeatedly blamed Van Gaal – who was in charge at Old Trafford from July 2014 to May 2016 – for his tough time in Manchester.
Speaking to ESPN Argentina earlier this month, Di Maria said: ‘The worst [manager] is Van Gaal, you can be sure of that. In case you had any doubt, I’ll clear that up for you right now.’
Angel Di Maria (left) played under Louis van Gaal (right) at Man United in the 2014-15 season
Di Maria struggled in England and only produced four goals in 32 appearances for United
Di Maria has since hit out at Van Gaal again, in his Netflix documentary ‘Breaking Down the Wall’.
The two men last met each other at the 2022 World Cup where Di Maria was part of the Argentina side that beat Van Gaal’s Dutch team in a quarter-final penalty shootout following a dramatic 2-2 draw.
While holding a replica of the World Cup trophy, Di Maria recalled: ‘Louis van Gaal is the worst coach I’ve ever had and I will never get tired of saying that.
‘We beat them with penalties even though he said we wouldn’t, because he knew everything.
‘He ended up shoving his words in his… well, let’s just say he ate his words, to keep it polite.’
Speaking in his Netflix documentary ‘Breaking Down the Wall’, Di Maria hit out at Van Gaal
Di Maria was part of an Argentina side that knocked the Netherlands out of the 2022 World Cup
Van Gaal was managing that Dutch team when they were beaten by Argentina via penalties
Van Gaal was asked about Di Maria’s struggles at United during an interview with BBC Sport back in 2019.
He replied: ‘Di Maria says it was my problem. I played him in every attacking position. You can check that. He never convinced me in any of those positions.
‘He could not deal with the continuous pressure on the ball in the Premier League. That was his problem.’
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