Di Maria: My daughter inspired red-hot form

Angel di Maria played his best season for Real Madrid last year while suffering tragedy away from the pitch.

The Manchester United winger spent every day in hospital with his daughter Mia, who was born three months premature and was given just a 30% chance of survival.

Di Maria was the most used outfield player in Carlo Ancelotti’s squad, and capped last season with a man-of-the- match performance in the Champions League final, before helping Argentina reach the World Cup final.

Last month he moved to Manchester United for €75m, a British transfer record, and he has publicly thanked Mia for inspiring him through such a difficult period in his life.

“My daughter taught me that everything is possible in life,” he said.

“She taught me that the hardest things in life could turn into the easiest ones. She taught me that all efforts have a reward at the end of the road. She taught me as well how to resist the pain and become stronger. That’s how I played so well last season; because my daughter showed me the way.

“When Mia was born, she was so small, that I could hold her with one hand. I remember the hospital. It was not easy but my wife and I decided to fight like our daughter was fighting. We used to go every day to the hospital for two months. We were there with other parents; it was always the same people in the hospital. We were all together there and in pain, but the pain made us stronger. We had this bond with all these parents; a bond made by pain.”

Mia pulled through and was allowed home after two months. She celebrated her first birthday last May, just before the World Cup.

On her birthday, Di Maria’s wife Jorgelina wrote her a letter, which Di Maria was too emotional to read out when he was asked to on TV show Canal Futbolista. The letter read: “Nobody but your mam and your dad know the pain that we felt every time we saw you with all these wires and machines in your beautiful face. There was nothing sadder for us to go home with our hands empty and our chests full of pain... We had tears on our pillows every night, our throats hurt from crying.

“We wanted to go back to hospital and never leave you… But now we can say that you are healthy, strong, you are so funny and you are a fighter; you have fought for your life, and for our lives.”

Di Maria was the key figure in the Argentina side that dismantled world champions Germany on Wednesday night; he set up the first three goals and scored a sensational fourth himself to secure a 4-2 win for his team.

And even though he was delighted with his performance, he told ESPN Argentina that his focus is on settling in at United.

“I’m so happy to have joined United and now I have to work on adapting myself to the team to help them out,” he said.

“It’s an honour for me to wear the number seven shirt but I feel no pressure at all. I have dreamed of playing for United in the Premier League and with Marcos Rojo, who deserved his opportunity, and Radamel Falcao, who is a great forward and will help us, we will put United where they belong this season.”

The dilemma for Louis van Gaal might be that Di Maria’s masterclass came from the right-wing in a 4-3-3 system, while the United coach, against Burnley, played Di Maria in the midfield three in a 5-3-2 formation. So far, Van Gaal has been unwilling to deviate from the three at the back experiment, but Di Maria might just convince Van Gaal he might have to reconsider.