Angel Di Maria Sends Argentina 2 Quotes Before Argelia Debut
angel di maria posted a message to Argentina on the day it was set to face Argelia in Kansas City, backing the team and coaching staff before the World Cup debut. He said he now knows what it feels like to be only a fan, after 16 years without watching a World Cup from the outside.
Di Maria's Instagram message
“Hoy arranca una nueva ilusión y solo quiero decirles, con la mano en el corazón, que estamos con ustedes hasta el fin del mundo,” Di María wrote. He added: “Sé lo que se siente estar ahí y ahora sé lo que se siente ser solamente un hincha. Puedo decirles que esa ilusión que hoy tienen la tenemos todos los Argentinos. Los quiero mucho y vamos por todo. Vamos Argentina!”
Argentina's veteran voice
Di María has played in four World Cups and has 32 goals in 145 matches for Argentina. His senior debut came on 6 September 2008 against Paraguay in World Cup qualifying, when he played the first half of a 1-1 draw before Sergio Agüero replaced him.
His last Argentina appearance ended with his second Copa América title, and the message landed with added weight because it came from a player who has scored key goals in finals against Brazil in the Maracaná, against Italy at Wembley, and against France in Qatar. Alfio Menotti summed up his standing simply: “Es uno de los mejores futbolistas de la historia del fútbol argentino. Y si no revisen dónde jugó, cómo jugó. Pregúntenles a sus compañeros”.
For Argentina, the note from outside the squad was a reminder that the team opened its campaign with one of its most decorated recent figures watching from afar. For Di María, it was a first-person shift from the pitch to the stands, and he wrote that the hope the players feel is the same hope shared by Argentines everywhere.
