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Real Madrid look set to lose Angel Di Maria. Carlo Ancelotti confirmed yesterday that the Argentine had declared an intension to absolve himself from the Galactico circus.

Whether the reasons for this are a long-brewing feud with Florentino Pérez or dismay at the club’s capture of James Rodríguez and its impact on his first team opportunities, it matters not. For one reason or another, Di Maria has been made to feel like he doesn’t belong and thus seeks sanctuary elsewhere.

If reports are to be believed – and for once they seem legitimate - Manchester United are keen to make Old Trafford his new home. There is of course a huge chasm between intention and completion when it comes to player transfers to United, but circumstance at least seems to look kindly upon the potential move. Paris Saint-Germain, as his only other clear suitor are hamstrung by FFP, and so if there’s genuine will, there is surely a way. Even allowing for magnificently inept Ed Wayward.

The rumours of a potential move have been greeted with a combination of understandable cynicism and strange reticence amongst some quarters of the United support. The slight chagrin that would temper legitimate joy seems to be born of opportunity cost. No one can deny that Di Maria is an excellent footballer who would be joining a less than excellent team. The concern is more whether such a player should be a priority. Essentially, is he truly what is needed?

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What may seem like pretentious conceit from United fans is understandable in context. They have seen a number of high profile signings join the club to huge fanfare and then struggle to find a natural place. Veron, Berbatov, Kagawa and now Mata have all been expensive square pegs looking for round holes of best fit. The club has made a habit of purchasing the finest ornaments that money can buy and using them as bad doorstops. United need a midfielder and not a winger is the claim.

But therein lie the two essential misconceptions about Angel; he is neither conventional wide-man nor luxury item. The prevailing adjective for the Argentine remains ‘winger’, even though his best performances for Benfica, Argentina and Real Madrid have all been central. It is true that he is able to play on both left and right flanks and this is a testament to his great versatility, but that is not where he is best utilised. He is as much a winger as Jon Favreau is an actor. He can do it, but it’s not really him.

The consensus amongst his prospective new supporters is that Van Gaal will revert to 4-3-3 should Di Maria sign (as the Dutchman has previously alluded to), playing the new man wide of a nominal centre-forward. That or he will stick to 3-5-2 and utilise Di Maria in the ‘Robben role’ upfront. The club will pay north of £50m for yet another forward, whilst midfield will once again remain neglected. This ignores the fact that Di Maria could be just the man to reinvigorate the central area.

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When Real signed Gareth Bale last summer, Carlo Ancelotti had to play him and was happy to do so. It relegated Di Maria to first reserve behind the rocket-heeled Welshman, in much the same way that last year’s must-have toy is replaced by the new season’s brat pacifier. It made sense too, in a Darwinian way. Di Maria was an energetic if somewhat inconsistent presence out wide, whereas Bale was a one-man juggernaut of thunderous muscle. It was like replacing a quill with a typewriter.

Then Sami Khedira suffered a long-term injury and Ancelotti was forced to play Di Maria as a makeshift central midfielder, to the left of Alonso and Modric in a central three. It was a position in which the ex-Águia had excelled for Benfica. To the very pleasant surprise of the Bernabéu, the erratic winger excelled as a midfield dynamo and arguably became the team and formation’s most important player. A sentiment somewhat mischievously reiterated by Diego Simeone this week.

What Di Maria provides in the middle of the pitch is dynamism, vigour, guile and thrust. All of which are mere memories at Old Trafford these days. The nearest comparison one can make to his midfield style using a United reference point is perhaps a turbo-charged Ryan Giggs. The Welshman was latterly deployed centrally by Ferguson, where his wonderful balance, and importantly his left foot, allowed him to glide past players with ease. Angel’s extreme one-footedness isn’t an issue in the middle where his left-peg lollops are far trickier to challenge.

(Image: Julian Finney)

The Argentine is of course faster and more energetic than latter-day Giggs, which makes him all the more effective in possession or without. Not only do his deft movements and acceleration leave opponents in his slipstream, but he is an incorrigible pest off the ball. He is not a Strootman or Vidal and will not go crunching into tackles, but he hassles and harries with obscene commitment. He’s the kind of opponent that Yaya Toure especially dislikes playing against; the frenzied mosquito nipping at every move.

He has excellent tactical awareness and a wonderful appreciation of space. He will fill in on the wings and deep in midfield when others step out on wandering forays, and he’ll intuitively ghost forward when vacant avenues present themselves. There is also a natural empathy for wide colleagues. In the same way that strikers often make the best crossers because they know where and when they’d like the ball, so Di Maria is fond of the diagonal pass to service wingers and spread play.

The fact that neither Carlo Ancelotti nor Real’s famously fickle support want the player to leave speaks volumes. He is neither a luxury player nor peripheral presence; he is essential, fundamental and brilliant. An Angel who deserves to be centre stage and not restricted to the wings. Manchester United would be extremely lucky to have him.

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