Angel Di Maria Abandons Return to Argentina After Receiving Pig's Head Threat

Argentine soccer player Angel Di Maria expressed on Tuesday that he will not be able to finish his career in his hometown of Rosario due to safety concerns. This decision comes after a disturbing incident where a pig's head with a bullet in the forehead was thrown at his family's business. The 36-year-old, who achieved World Cup victory with Argentina in 2022, had previously expressed his desire to return to his childhood club in Rosario. However, recent gang-related crime in the city has made it unsafe for him and his family. Di Maria shared with TV station Rosario3 that there was a threat directed towards his sister’s business, warning him not to return to Rosario Central or else his own daughter, Pia, would be targeted next.

"I am not going to return to Rosario in this way. They touched my family and I am not going to allow that. Not at any price," he said, adding he wanted to protect the "peace and happiness" of his family.

Di Maria, who has played for Manchester United, has faced other threats including a note thrown into a family property in March threatening their lives if he joined any club in Rosario, a city in the central Santa Fe province.

Argentine authorities said at the time the note contained a threat from "criminal organizations" putting on a show of strength.

Santa Fe Governor Maximiliano Pullaro said this month there were protocols in place to guarantee the safety of public figures.

But Di Maria said he disagreed: "It is disrespectful to talk about security and protocols for me when people from Rosario cannot go out to work, cannot wait for the bus without being robbed or killed for a backpack."

Several high-profile South American footballers have faced criminal actions ranging from threats to serious crime, such as kidnapping and blackmail.

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Also in Rosario, gunmen opened fire last year on a shop belonging to the family of World Cup-winning Argentine captain Lionel Messi's wife.

They left a threatening message for the footballer in what was also interpreted as gangs flexing their muscles.

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Meanwhile, guerilla fighters in Colombia kidnapped the father of Liverpool footballer Luis Diaz last October and held him for 12 days before freeing him.

(This story has not been edited by staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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