Manchester United Transfer News: Angel Di Maria Blamed for Real Madrid Exit

Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed Angel Di Maria wanted too much money to stay at Real Madrid.

The Argentinian maestro was a key contributor to last season's cup double at the Bernabeu, but he surprisingly left during a summer in which Toni Kroos and James Rodriguez were brought in.

Ancelotti suggests the individual's wage demands were too hefty for the Bernabeu outfit and that he unanimously agreed with the club's decision to cash in, as reported by Cadena COPE (via Sky Sports): "Di Maria? I was in agreement with the club. There are times when the club needs to say no. You can’t change the policies of the club for one player. Di Maria asked for a lot of money and preferred to leave to go find it. The club couldn’t give him the money he wanted."

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The Italian boss hints he agreed with Florentino Perez's desire to let Di Maria leave, despite previous indications suggesting he wanted to keep the 26-year-old in the Spanish capital. 

Eugenio Lopez, who works alongside Jorge Mendes as Di Maria's agent, previously suggested Ancelotti "did everything possible to get Di Maria to stay," as told to COPE and reported by AS (via Football Espana).

Upon claims from Perez that Di Maria's wage desire was on par with Cristiano Ronaldo's, Lopez noted, "Di Maria never asked for €8 million and would have stayed for less than he is paid by Manchester United."

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Di Maria also responded to such claims, saying, "I heard what he (Perez) said. To earn what Cristiano does I'd have to win the Ballon d'Or," as reported by Radio America (via Peter Hanson of Goal.com).

Since moving to United, Di Maria has posted three goals and three assists in five Premier League starts, per WhoScored.com. Despite the English side's lack of decent form since the start of the season, Di Maria has proven more than capable of excelling in the notoriously tough division.

It's easy to overlook just how important his running from deep was during Madrid's journey to La Decima. He continued to inject life into the side during the Champions League final when Ronaldo was hurting and Gareth Bale became isolated out wide.

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Di Maria's wonderful assist saw him outlined as "the star of the show" by the Daily Mail's David Kent, a description followers of Ancelotti's side will have seen on numerous occasions last season. He looks set to be the centrepiece of a United rebuilding process which could take a number of seasons, but with his 27th birthday approaching in February, it's likely Di Maria's best years are ahead of him.

He is less marketable than Ronaldo, Bale and Rodriguez, sure, but his talent deserves to be recognised in this echelon. Madrid aren't a club who want for money, despite their massive debt, so to cite intolerable wages as the reason for Di Maria's departure seems something of a cop out. 

Ancelotti has most likely had enough of the subject—particularly if he wanted Di Maria to stay—so it is easier for all if he follows Perez's line of thinking. There would be little point in creating a public image which suggests the manager isn't being supported by his board, particularly when Madrid spent so lavishly across the summer.