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Angel Di Maria picked superstars Lionel Messi and Neymar, but notably snubbed Cristiano Ronaldo as he named his dream starting XI from his current and former teammates, reports TyC Sports.
Di Maria named a heavily Argentina-dominant side with four defenders, three midfielders, and three attackers. You can see the lineup below -
Di Maria is one of the most prolific players to have played with both Messi and Ronaldo. He, somewhat controversially, named former Paris Saint-Germain teammates Kylian Mbappe and Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the frontline ahead of the Portuguese.
Di Maria has played the third-highest number of games with Ronaldo and is also third for goal combinations with 28 in 166 games. He is only behind Mbappe (31 in 151) and Edinson Cavani (29 in 154). Meanwhile, Messi only ranks 13th and sixth on these charts (15 in 136) respectively.
Di Maria spent seven seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, the most of any team in his career. Therefore, three of PSG's best all-time players, Mbappe, Ibrahimovic, and Neymar, made it into his ultimate XI.
The Argentine winger won his only UEFA Champions League trophy at Real Madrid in the 2013-14 season. He made sure to include his former Los Blancos teammates Marcelo and Sergio Ramos in his ideal XI. He also included legendary Portuguese midfielder Rui Costa, who played one full season with him at Benfica back in the 2007-08 season.
However, the biggest success in his career came with the Argentina national team, lifting the FIFA World Cup in 2022. He included three players from that run in his ideal XI - goalkeeper Emi Martinez, centre-back Nicolas Otamendi and, of course, Messi.
The fourth Argentine in his squad was Javier Mascherano, who made the second-most appearances for La Albiceleste with 147. This just goes to show Di Maria's longevity and the quality of the players he has shared the pitch with, as he continues to shine at Benfica.
Two flops at Liverpool prevented them from signing Ronaldo before he moved to Manchester United
Liverpool reportedly decided against signing Cristiano Ronaldo before his move to Manchester United from Sporting CP back in 2003. As per Sport Bible, this was because then-manager Gerard Houllier believed it would create problems in the dressing room.
The Reds had just signed forwards Florent Sinama Pongolle and Anthony Le Tallec. Signing Ronaldo could have broken their wage structure, which Houllier wasn't willing to do.
Instead, Liverpool signed Harry Kewell from Leeds in 2003. The Australian made 139 appearances for the Reds across five seasons. However, an undiagnosed injury kept him from reaching the heights that many people believed he would.
Arsenal were also close to signing the five-time Ballon d'Or, with an £8 million fee agreed between them and Sporting CP. But Manchester United outbid them and the rest is history.
