The Argentine was replaced just after the hour mark by Leandro Paredes at Parc des Princes after he was alerted to the emergency
Angel Di Maria was withdrawn during Paris Saint-Germain’s loss to Nantes on Sunday after he received news that his home had been robbed with members of his family present, Goal can confirm.
The Argentine was replaced just after the hour mark by Leandro Paredes at Parc des Princes, after Randal Kolo had cancelled out Julian Draxler’s opener.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side slipped to a 2-1 defeat against Antoine Kombouare’s relegation-threatened side thanks to Moses Simon’s winner, but their attention afterward was focused more on Di Maria’s well-being than the final result.
What happened during the game?
Di Maria had turned in a solid performance and was helping PSG push to take the lead back when sporting director Leonardo signalled communication to Pochettino on the sidelines.
The former Tottenham boss promptly withdrew Di Maria and vanished into the dressing room with the forward before returning minutes later to oversee the rest of his side’s match.
The hosts seemed shaken by the news and struggled for the remainder of the game, with their concern compounded at the close of proceedings by the disclosure that team-mate Marquinhos’ parents had also been victimised by home intruders.
The incident is not the first time that Di Maria has had a property attacked; his family were left traumatized by an incident during his time at Manchester United that contributed to his exit from Old Trafford.
What did Pochettino say?
“It’s not an excuse but there was a drop in energy,” the Argentine stated when discussing his side’s performance. “We talked about things other than football after the game in the locker room.”
“The truth is that the first period we controlled the match, but after the equalizer, we had trouble and we were not strong enough to hang onto this match.”
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