Graeme Souness, who won the league five times as a player with Liverpool, has warned Manchester United fans that they may fail to see the best of Angel Di Maria if new manager Louis van Gaal continues with his 3-5-2 formation, as reported by the Evening Express.

The former Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United manager also added that this week’s international friendlies shows where Man Utd should be including Di Maria, and it is not centrally, as Van Gaal seems keen to do, judging by his selection against Burnley in the Premier League prior to the international break.

Di Maria was a star as Argentina beat Germany 4-2. The winger provided three assists and scored one. The result was something of a revenge for the World Cup, when Argentina lost in the final against Die Mannschaft.

Souness said: “Angel di Maria is too much of a winger to play as a wing-back, so he could play one position inside the widest man in a 3-5-2.

“If you play with a back four you can play him wide, as Argentina did when he made three goals and scored the other in their 4-2 win over Germany in midweek. I don’t read much into international friendlies but that performance showed his talent.”

The addition of Di Maria saw Man Utd break the British transfer record, with the Old Trafford club paying £59.7 million to bring him in.

Real Madrid have apparently demanded a fee of £75 million for the signature of Angel Di Maria, with the Spanish giants taking advantage of the Old Trafford club’s apparent desperation to add a marquee player this summer, as reported by Spanish football expert Graham Hunter.

#Madrid tell #United, at least in opening gambit, that want £75m for #DiMaria Either taking them for suckers/desperate.Top player #Too much

— Graham Hunter (@BumperGraham) August 24, 2014

Manchester United started the season off with a painful loss against Swansea City at Old Trafford, with Louis van Gaal’s first game in charge ending in a 2-1 loss. Fans have reacted very negatively since, and there have been increasing demands for the Manchester side to actually move for world class players before the window is out.

With Di Maria a target, Real Madrid might have sensed the blood in the water. Ancelotti has previously spoken of the importance of Di Maria to Real, but is clearly willing to part with him for a fee well above his realistic value.

It remains to be seen whether Man Utd will agree to that amount, but it would be unsurprising if Ed Woodward was taken in by the need to move for someone big soon.

Paris Saint Germain have officially pulled out of the race for Angel Di Maria, with club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi confirming that they have withdrawn from further negotiations over the transfer of the player.

PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi confirms PSG have withdrawn from negotiations over the signing of Real Madrid’s Angel Di Maria. #PSG #RMCF

— FFW (@FrenchFtWeekly) August 7, 2014

The French champions looked the most likely side to capture Di Maria, who had a sensational season for Real Madrid last season. Manchester United have, however, been consistently linked with moves for the Argentinian international, and it now remains to be seen whether they make a concerted effort to sign the player who was one of Europe’s top assist makers last season.

Di Maria is available for transfer, for the right price, after the Spanish giants captured World Cup sensation James Rodriguez from AS Monaco. While Carlo Ancelotti, the club’s manager, is reportedly not keen on selling a player who was key to his side’s capture of La Decima last season, the club’s hierarchy have decided he is surplus to requirements if the right bid comes in.