Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal feels that Angel Di Maria is still adapting to life in the Premier League after hauling the Argentine off at half time in their 2-0 win over Sunderland.
The 27-year-old put in a below-par display in the first 45 minutes at Old Trafford, leading Van Gaal to replace him with Adnan Januzaj at the break.
However, the Dutchman has insisted that he is prepared to give Di Maria all the time that he needs to become accustomed to life in the English top flight.
He told the club's official website: "When a player isn't in a game, I have to make a change. I'm the manager and I can't deny what I see on the pitch. We were better in the second half, so I cannot say it was the wrong decision.
"We have to give Angel more time to adapt to the Premier League; it's not so easy with the high tempo. I want to give him time, but it's also not easy to change a player of his quality."
United moved back into third in the Premier League table as a result of their victory over the Black Cats.
Simon Sinclair
