Why did Di Maria never join Barcelona? The reason behind the passing of two times

37-year-old Angel Di Maria scored four goals in the Club World Cup, then officially bid farewell to Benfica and the entire European football world. His departure also marks an era of a very unique player ending his glorious career in Europe. He is now going to return to his hometown team, Rosario Central.

We review Di Maria's star-studded resume, who has played for top giants such as Real Madrid, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, and Juventus. But here, there is only another wealthy family, Barcelona. And a very interesting thing is that Di Maria has been very close to joining Barcelona twice.

The first time was in the winter of 2017. Neymar had just transferred to Paris at that time, and Barcelona was looking for his replacement in the market, and Paris itself was willing to sell Di Maria due to the pressure of a financial fair competition. But the deal didn't work in the end because of the price. Paris asked for 80 million euros at the time, which was indeed too high for a 29-year-old player.

The second time was in the summer of 2022, when Di Maria's contract expired and she left Paris with her free agent. Barcelona once again considered him, but this time their movements were slow, allowing Juventus to take the lead. We all know the story later. Just a few months later, Di Maria scored a goal in the World Cup final, helping Argentina win the World Cup championship. Looking back now, Barcelona's hesitation at the time was indeed a pity.

This is the "if" in football, full of all kinds of possibilities and regrets. Di Maria and Barcelona, ​​both fates eventually passed by. Now, as he officially bid farewell to Europe and returns to Argentina to "return to his roots", this past can only become a topic of conversation for fans.