Di Maria: It was special to face Real Madrid

Angel di Maria was unhappy with his own performance for Paris Saint-Germain against Real Madrid, but said it was “special” to come up against his former club.

Di Maria was withdrawn 67 minutes into Wednesday’s 0-0 Champions League draw between his current and ex-employers – a result that leaves top spot in Group A very much in the balance between the sides.

The Argentina star struggled to make an impact as PSG and Madrid largely cancelled each other out, but he enjoyed the occasion and was satisfied with a hard-earned draw.

Di Maria said: “This was a special game for me, as I only left Madrid a little more than a year ago. Facing my old team-mates was special, even if it didn’t turn out great for me.

“We had a lot of chances to win the game. We did that against one of the top four teams in Europe. The important thing is that we were able to pick up a point.”

PSG midfielder Blaise Matuidi echoed his team-mate’s thoughts on the result, but is wary of a Madrid side likely to be boosted by the returns of Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema for next month’s reverse fixture at the Santiago Bernabeu.

“We knew it would be a tough match to the best team in Europe,” Matuidi said.

“We’ll go there to take the first place, but we know it won’t be easy as Real will have players back.”