London, Sep 6 (IANS): New Manchester United recruit Angel Di Maria revealed that his former club Real Madrid had asked him to not play the FIFA World Cup final in Brazil against Germany.
As luck would have it, Di Maria, who insisted he ignored the Spanish club's request, was injured and only made it to the substitutes bench in Argentina's final loss to the Germans.
"I got a letter from Madrid that arrived at 11 a.m. (local time) on the day of the (World Cup final) asking me not to play," Di Maria, who broke the British transfer record in a 60 million pounds move to Manchester United, was quoted as saying by America & Closs - an Argentine radio programme.
"We were playing at 4 p.m. and I was preparing myself to be in the best condition, knowing that I could have got injured. I was thinking about playing in the final, although I knew that if I did there was a 90 percent chance I'd re-injure myself."
"As soon as I got that letter, I ripped it up. I did not care, no matter what. I suffered a lot that morning. That was the worst thing to ever happen in my life. I didn't speak to anyone at the club about this. It doesn't matter," said the attacking midfielder.
"In the end, it was (Argentina manager Alejandro) Sabella who made the decision and it was for the best," he added.
Di Maria said that he had never wanted to leave Real Madrid but he was forced into making a decision after the arrival of stars like Germany's Toni Kroos and Colombian World Cup star James Rodriguez
"I never said I wanted to leave Madrid. The club decided to buy other players. I always had a great relationship with my team-mates," he said.
However, he revealed that his poor relationship with Real president Florentino Perez helped usher him towards the exit.
"I have no relationship with Florentino Perez. When I signed my contract, he was not present."
The 26-year-old said former Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo, his Real Madrid teammate, had supported him and made a case for the Argentine to remain at the club.
"Cristiano was always on my side," he said. "He fought for me to stay. I don't know how long he will stay at Madrid."