Angel di Maria Out of World Cup
By Opeyemi Oladunjoye
Argentina’s Ángel di María has been ruled out of the remainder of the World Cup finals after the winger tore a right thigh muscle during the first half of Argentina’s quarter-final victory over Belgium.
Di María suffered the tear after playing a shot, which was blocked by Belgium captain Vincent Kompany. He received treatment on the pitch and attempted to play on, but fell back to the turf moments later before hobbling away in tears to be replaced by Enzo Pérez.
Argentina coach, Alejandro Sabella, initially expressed hopes the injury would not prove too serious during his post-match media briefings, claiming the 26-year-old would undergo scans on their return to the team’s base near Belo Horizonte on Sunday.
The severity of the tear however became clearer later. The Real Madrid player is now expected to miss the remainder of the finals. An official announcement is also expected on Sunday confirming the extent of Di Maria’s injury.
