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| |name = Ángel Di María | |name = Ángel Di María | ||
| |fullname = Ángel Fabián Di María Hernández | |fullname = Ángel Fabián Di María Hernández | ||
| |image = Di María |
|image = Di María MU.jpg | ||
| |image_size = | |image_size = 300 | ||
| |caption = Di María playing for ] in |
|caption = Di María playing for ] in 2014 | ||
| |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1988|2|14|df=y}} | |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1988|2|14|df=y}} | ||
| |birth_place = ], Argentina | |birth_place = ], Argentina | ||
Revision as of 00:46, 10 January 2015
| File:Di María MU.jpgDi María playing for Manchester United in 2014 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ángel Fabián Di María Hernández | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1988-02-14) 14 February 1988 (age 36) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Rosario, Argentina | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Winger / Attacking midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
| Current team | Manchester United | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 7 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Torito | ||||||||||||||||
| 1992–2005 | Rosario Central | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | Rosario Central | 35 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007–2010 | Benfica | 76 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
| 2010–2014 | Real Madrid | 124 | (22) | ||||||||||||||
| 2014– | Manchester United | 12 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2007 | Argentina U20 | 13 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Argentina U23 | 6 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2008– | Argentina | 57 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 December 2014 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18 November 2014 | |||||||||||||||||
Ángel Fabián Di María Hernández (born 14 February 1988) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays for English club Manchester United and the Argentina national team. He can play as either a winger or attacking midfielder.
After beginning his career with Rosario Central, Di María moved to Europe in 2007 to play for Benfica, earning a €25 million move to Real Madrid three years later. After winning the Champions League with Real Madrid, he signed for Manchester United in 2014 for a British record £59.7 million.
A full international for Argentina since 2008, Di María has earned over 50 caps for his country. He scored the goal that won the country gold at the 2008 Olympics, and has also represented them at two World Cups and the 2011 Copa América.
Early life
Di María was born on 14 February 1988 in Rosario, Argentina as one of three children of Miguel Di María and Diana Hernández de Di María, and grew up in Perdriel. As an infant, he was unusually active, and on recommendation of a doctor was signed up for football at the age of three. He also helped his parents with their work at a local coal yard along with his two sisters, Vanesa and Evelyn. Due to the low income his family earned, purchasing football boots and keeping up with Di María's hobby was difficult for his parents. He considers himself to be very family-oriented, and has used a significant amount of his salary to "give back" to his family. After being transferred to Benfica, he asked his father not to work anymore and bought a house for his parents and sisters.
Club career
Rosario Central
At the age of four, Di María joined Rosario Central. As he had already committed to playing for his local club, Torito, 35 footballs were given in compensation.
Di María made his professional debut on 14 December 2005 in Rosario's final fixture of the Apertura, a 2–2 draw away to Independiente, by replacing Emiliano Vecchio. He scored for the first time on 24 November 2006 in the following season's Apertura in a 4–2 win at home over Quilmes, a minute after replacing Leonardo Borzani at half time. After playing at the Under-20 World Cup in Canada, Boca Juniors made a bid of US$6.5 million for him.
Benfica
Di María was transferred to Portuguese side S.L. Benfica in July 2007 where he played as a winger. Benfica paid Rosario Central €6 million for 80% of his sports rights and 50% of sports right of Andrés Díaz. Later, in August 2008, the Portuguese club paid an extra €2 million for the remaining 20%, but re-sold 10% to GestiFute. Di María was signed as a replacement for Benfica's departing captain, Simão, who joined Atlético Madrid earlier that summer.
Di María signed a new deal with Benfica in October 2009, adding three more years to his current deal, which was to last until 30 June 2015 with a €40 million minimum fee release. Later that month, he was backed by Diego Maradona to become "Argentina's next superstar."
On 27 February 2010, Di María scored his first hat trick in a classic 4–0 win against Leixões SC. The next day, he made the headlines as "Magic Tri María" in all sports newspapers in Portugal.
Real Madrid
2010–11 season
On 28 June 2010, Real Madrid C.F. posted on their website that they had come to terms with Benfica for the transfer of Di María. He signed a five-year contract for €25 million, plus €11 million in incentives, as announced one day later by the Portuguese Stock Exchange regulating entity. On 7 July 2010, Di María arrived to Madrid directly from Buenos Aires, and passed the medical test on 8 July.
He made his debut on 4 August 2010 in a friendly match against Club América, which Real Madrid won 3–2. On 22 August, Di María scored his first goal in another friendly against Hércules CF, which Real Madrid won 3–1. In the last match of preseason, on 24 August, after an individual play described as a "magic moment", he opened the score of the 2–0 win against CA Peñarol, for the Santiago Bernabéu Trophy.
His league debut came on 29 August, in a 0–0 draw against RCD Mallorca. On 18 September, Di María scored his first league goal for Real Madrid in their 2–1 win over Real Sociedad. Ten days later, he scored his first goal in the Champions League against AJ Auxerre, in a 1–0 victory. He scored a controversial first goal against Sevilla FC on 19 December. Days later, Di María assisted Karim Benzema's two goals and Cristiano Ronaldo's goal in an astonishing 8–0 drubbing of Levante UD on 22 December. In the second leg of the Champions League last 16 round against Olympique Lyonnais, he scored the third and final goal in a 3–0 win to send Real Madrid through to the last eight for the first time in seven years.
Di María scored Real's third goal during their first-leg Champions League quarter-final victory over Tottenham Hotspur on 5 April 2011. On 20 April, he was sent off in the 31st minute of extra time in the Copa del Rey final against rivals FC Barcelona. Real Madrid won the game 1–0, the lone goal of this game (in the 13th minute of extra time) being a header from Ronaldo, which came from his cross, thus obtaining his first honour with Real Madrid.
2011–12 season
During the start of the 2011–2012 season, Di María endured a tough series of matches as he struggled to adapt to the pace of the league following the summer break. As a result, Di María's early performance for the season were mixed with moments of genuinely good play interspersed with moments of sheer madness by the Argentine. This point was well illustrated during Real Madrid's 1–0 defeat to Levante, a match which saw a clearly out of sorts Di María commit a horror foul on Levante's Juanfran during the match. Di María caused the two teams to clash and an on-field incident ensued. After this, however, Di María's performances improved, including opening up a significant gap at the top of the assists table. From October 2011, Di María was being picked by José Mourinho ahead of Kaká and Mesut Özil, a sign of his improving form.
On 27 November 2011, Di María played 60 minutes in a league game against city rivals Atlético Madrid, in which he scored a goal for Real Madrid. José Mourinho's team won the game 4–1. On 3 December 2011, Di María scored Real's first goal from a sharp angle in a 0–3 defeat of Sporting de Gijón in La Liga. He was a constant threat and presence in the starting XI as Real Madrid won their 32nd league title, playing in their 3−0 win over Athletic Bilbao that clinched the league title.
2012–13 season
He scored his first goal of the season against Barcelona in the first leg of the 2012 Supercopa de España at Camp Nou after a mistake by Barcelona goalkeeper Víctor Valdés.
Although Di María didn't have the best season, he did contribute in big moments, most notably by sending in the cross for Cristiano Ronaldo's goal against Manchester United on 13 February, in the league he provided quality assists, and scored 8 goals throughout the season in 46 appearances, notably against Atlético Madrid and Málaga C.F..
On 9 August 2012, Di María signed a new contract with Real Madrid, keeping him at the club until 2018.
2013–14 season
On 2 October 2013, he scored two goals against Copenhagen in Real Madrid's 4–0 Champions League victory over them. Di María was used in a midfield position with the arrival of new manager Carlo Ancelotti.
Later in the season due to managerial decisions by Ancelotti he switched his playing position permanently to an attacking central midfielder and was frequently seen in the starting lineup next to Luka Modrić and Xabi Alonso. He contributed to the club's 2–1 victory over FC Barcelona in the 2014 Copa del Rey Final with the opening goal. Di María was the top assist maker in La Liga for the season, contributing 17.
On 24 May 2014, in 2014 UEFA Champions League Final, an amazing zig-zag dribble past 3 players resulted in a shot which was desperatly saved by Thibaut Courtois, but teammate Gareth Bale was there to head the rebound into the net in the 110th minute, giving Real Madrid a 2–1 lead over city rivals Atlético Madrid in an eventual 4–1 win. Di María was named man of the match by UEFA after the game, and was presented with the honour by Alex Ferguson.
2014–15 season
Di María was an unused substitute as Real Madrid won the 2014 UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla FC on 12 August. A week later, in the first leg of the Supercopa de España, he played the final 15 minutes of a 1–1 home draw against Atlético in place of Luka Modrić.
Manchester United
On 26 August 2014, Di María signed a five-year deal with Manchester United for a transfer fee of £59.7 million, the fifth most expensive transfer of all time and the highest fee ever paid by a British club. He inherited the number 7 shirt at Manchester United, which was previously worn by club legends such as George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo.
2014–15 season
Di María made his début on 30 August in a 0–0 draw with Burnley, in which he was substituted for Anderson after 70 minutes. Di María scored his first goal for United on his Old Trafford debut on 14 September, netting directly from a free kick in a 4–0 win over Queens Park Rangers. He also provided an assist for Juan Mata's goal in the same match, winning the vote for 'Man of the Match'. His performance was highlighted by Sky Sports' Player Cam feature, which was brought back especially for the match. In the next match against Leicester City on 21 September 2014, he again scored a goal and provided another assist although United lost the game 5-3.
On 2 October 2014, Di María won Manchester United's Player of the Month for September after racking up two goals and two assists in his first four matches for United. One week later, he won his second individual trophy at United after his goal against Leicester, in which he chipped the goalkeeper, Kasper Schmeichel, was voted as Manchester United's Goal of the Month for September. Di María continued his run of fine form on 5 October 2014 by scoring a goal and providing an assist to Falcao to help United defeat Everton 2–1.
On 4 January 2015, he returned from his injury to score a late goal in a 2–0 win against Yeovil Town in the FA Cup.
International career
Youth
In 2007, Di María was picked to play for the Argentina Under-20 squad. He was capped for the 2007 South American Youth Championship in Paraguay. In 2007, he was called up for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada. They went on to win the tournament with Di María scoring three goals in the process.
On 28 January 2008, Di María and some of his U-20 teammates were called up for the Argentina squad for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He scored the extra-time game-winning goal on a pass from Lionel Messi in the 105th minute of his team's 2–1 quarter-final win over the Netherlands. On 23 August, Di María scored the game-winner, a chip over the keeper from the edge of the area in the 57th minute of Argentina's 1–0 victory against Nigeria to capture their second straight Olympic Gold Medal in the final game of the Olympic tournament.
Senior
,_Raul_Meireles_(R),_Portugal_-_Argentina,_9th_February_2011.jpg)
On 6 September 2008, Di María made his debut for the Argentina senior team in a match against Paraguay.
2010 FIFA World Cup
On 19 May 2010, Di María was selected by then-manager Diego Maradona as one of Argentina's 23 players for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. In Argentina's 5−0 friendly win over Canada on 24 May, Di María scored his first ever international goal, scoring from outside the box as his shot went off the post and in. He helped the side reach the quarter-finals, playing in all five of Argentina's matches and starting four of them.
Following the World Cup, on 11 August 2010, he scored the first ever international goal at Dublin's new Aviva Stadium in a friendly against Ireland as Argentina won 1–0.
2014 FIFA World Cup
Di María made 12 appearances during the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign and was named in Argentina's squad for the tournament finals. In Argentina's round of 16 match against Switzerland, Di María scored the only goal of the game after 118 minutes, from a Messi assist. During the quarter-final match against Belgium, Di María suffered a muscle tear in the thigh and was later taken off the field. It was later announced after the match, that Di María would miss the rest of the tournament due to the injury. He had previously helped to create Higuaín's only goal of the match, which sent Argentina into the semi-finals. Argentina finished the tournament as runners-up to Germany.
On 11 July, Di María was named on the 10-man shortlist for FIFA's Golden Ball award for the tournament's best player.
On 3 September 2014, in a friendly away against World champions Germany, Di María had a part in all four of Argentina's goals in a 4–2 victory, assisting three and scoring one.
Style of play
Di María is a quick, tricky, and talented winger, who is also capable of playing as a more central attacking midfielder, or on either side of the pitch, although he is predominantly a left-footed player. In recent years, he has even been deployed to great effect as a central midfielder, in particular under Carlo Ancelotti's tenure with Real Madrid. Di María is an agile, creative, and highly technical player, who possesses excellent dribbling skills and ball control, as well as great pace, stamina, and acceleration, attributes which allow him to beat players easily in one on one situations. He is also gifted with excellent vision, passing and crossing ability, which allow him to function effectively as a playmaker and as an assist provider, although he is also capable of scoring goals himself. Despite not being physically imposing, he is also a very hard-working player, and he has recently improved on the defensive aspect of his game under manager José Mourinho.
Personal life
Di María is nicknamed Fideo, which means noodle in Spanish. He holds an Italian passport.
He married his wife Jorgelina (née Cardoso) in 2011. Together they have a daughter, Mia, who was born three months premature and survived after treatment at an intensive care unit at the Hospital Universitario Montepríncipe in Madrid.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 4 January 2015.
| Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Rosario Central | 2005–06 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | |
| 2006–07 | 25 | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 6 | ||
| Total | 35 | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 6 | ||
| Benfica | 2007–08 | 26 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 1 |
| 2008–09 | 24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 4 | |
| 2009–10 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 10 | |
| Total | 76 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 29 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 124 | 15 | |
| Real Madrid | 2010–11 | 35 | 6 | 8 | 0 | — | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 9 | |
| 2011–12 | 23 | 5 | 2 | 0 | — | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 7 | ||
| 2012–13 | 32 | 7 | 9 | 2 | — | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 9 | ||
| 2013–14 | 34 | 4 | 7 | 4 | — | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 11 | ||
| 2014–15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 124 | 22 | 27 | 6 | — | 39 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 191 | 36 | ||
| Manchester United | 2014–15 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 13 | 4 | |
| Career total | 247 | 38 | 35 | 7 | 12 | 2 | 72 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 367 | 61 | |
- Includes Supercopa de España.
International
- As of match played 18 November 2014.
- Use dmy dates from April 2013
- 1988 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Rosario, Santa Fe
- Argentine footballers
- Association football midfielders
- Primera División Argentina players
- Rosario Central footballers
- Primeira Liga players
- S.L. Benfica footballers
- La Liga players
- Real Madrid C.F. players
- Manchester United F.C. players
- Premier League players
- Argentina international footballers
- 2010 FIFA World Cup players
- 2011 Copa América players
- 2014 FIFA World Cup players
- Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
- Olympic gold medalists for Argentina
- Olympic medalists in football
- Argentine expatriate footballers
- Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Spain
- Expatriate footballers in Portugal
- Expatriate footballers in Spain
- Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics
- Argentina under-20 international footballers
- Argentine expatriates in Portugal
- Argentine expatriates in England
- Argentine people of Italian descent