Gerardo Martino plays down Angel Di Maria's Manchester United slump

Argentina boss Gerardo Martino has expressed his belief that Angel di Maria has fallen victim to his own barnstorming start to life at Manchester United.

The 26-year-old, who joined United for a club-record £59.7m from Real Madrid, looked money well spent after scoring three times in his first five games.

However, Di Maria has endured a perceived dip in form recently, but Martino says that the winger simply raised the bar too high in the early stages of his Red Devils career.

"His start was exceptional and the fact that generally when players go to a new club and have to get used to a new league, a new team, a different style of football and different teammates," he told reporters.

"I think the form that he is showing now is possibly more typical of a player going to a new club than the very first few games when he burst onto the scene and did so well."

The Argentine, who has five assists in nine Premier League outings, is expected to face Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday afternoon.