(foto: Getty Images)
Angel Di Maria played his last match in the Argentine national team jersey yesterday.
Argentina won the Copa America yesterday, giving a perfect send-off to one of its greatest footballers of all time, Angel Di Maria, who played his final match for the Albiceleste in Miami.
Di Maria stayed on the field until the 116th minute, then left in tears to loud ovations, watching the end of the match from the bench.
Just before the closing ceremony, Argentina's captain Lionel Messi invited his old friends Angel Di Maria and Nicolas Otamendi to lift the trophy with him, showing them the highest respect for their contributions to making Argentina the best team in the world.
"It was written in the stars that it would end this way. I told the boys before the game that I dreamed it would end exactly like this. That we would win. I don't know what to say. I feel fulfilled. I will be forever grateful to have been part of this generation. I gave everything I had, and I'm happy to say goodbye in this way," said Di Maria.
Di Maria, who scored 31 goals in 145 appearances for Argentina, is not ending his career yet, as it is more or less clear that he will continue to play for Benfica in Lisbon next season.