Angry Devils fans put fire under Angel
PARIS Saint-Germain forward Angel Di Maria was spurred on by the hostile crowd at Manchester United on Tuesday, the French club’s manager Thomas Tuchel said.
Di Maria was United’s record signing in 2014 when he was bought for £59.7 million but an underwhelming debut season under then-manager Louis Van Gaal led to the Argentina international’s departure to PSG a year later.
In the Champions League last 16 on Tuesday, the 30-year-old was booed by fans and had a beer bottle thrown in his direction, but he had the last laugh by having a hand in both PSG goals in a 2-0 win.
“He had a hard time in the first half, the guy is very competitive. If you tease him, it does not make him weaker,” Tuchel said. “I thought he had a good relationship with the fans. He was a bit nervous and needed to be calmer in the first half. In the end he did well.”
For around 20 minutes, the glory days really did feel like they were back for United.
The capacity 74,000 crowd at Old Trafford was in full voice, United were attacking PSG down the flanks with speed and aggression, and their opponents looked shaky.
That lasted until the French champions began to get a grip on the game and by the end, a 2-0 loss in the last 16, first-leg clash served to highlight the gulf between this United team and the European elite.
“That’s the level we want to get to,” said United’s caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. “We’ve been talking about top four (in the Premier League); that’s one thing, but we want to be at the top and Man United should be at the top.
“This is a top, top team we played against. Our players are disappointed, of course, but I also think they know we need to step up our level to get to the level we want to get to,” added the Norwegian after suffering his first defeat since taking over 12 games ago in December.
United lost forwards Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard to muscle injuries midway through and replacements Alexis Sanchez and Juan Mata failed to spark.
PSG had to cope without the injured Neymar and Edison Cavani up front yet were a real threat in the final third with Julian Draxler and Angel Di Maria causing United problems.
That is the kind of strength in depth United will need to build if they are to return to being the kind of force in Europe that they were under Alex Ferguson.
“It’s a reality check... we are looking to strengthen the squad and then again we have so many young players to take a step up for next season,” added Solskjaer.
The Norwegian insisted his first loss won’t wreck the momentum United have built up in the Premier League.
“No, not at all because at this club we have to bounce back and we are in a tournament, the Champions League, where it’s always going to be difficult. But our bread and butter is the league so (I’m) not afraid of that.
“The reaction in the dressing room was disappointment and when we go to Paris we’ll give it a go. It is a difficult mountain to climb but not impossible.”
Only once since the 2010/11 season have United won a Champions League knockout stage game and with key midfielder Paul Pogba suspended after his late red card, the odds are stacked against that changing in Paris on March 6.