Portuguese media confirmed that an injury will prevent Angel Di Maria from participating in his team Benfica’s match against Barcelona in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League.
The 37-year-old suffered a muscle injury that is not serious, but he has not recovered from it yet, so coach Bruno Lage decided to exclude him from Wednesday’s match scheduled at the Estadio da Luz.
Di Maria will not be the only absence for the Portuguese team against Barcelona, as another muscle injury will keep Florentino Luis out of participating in the upcoming summit.
Di Maria has participated with Benfica in 32 matches this season in all competitions, during which he scored 14 goals and made 8 others.
The Argentine international played a major role in the Barcelona match in the league stage, when the Catalan club won in the last moments 5-4.
Di Maria is expected to join the second leg scheduled for next week at the Olympic Luis Companys Stadium.
