Argentina are pulling out all the stops in order to have Angel Di Maria back in their ranks.
The Real Madrid ace injured himself in La Albiceleste's World Cup quarter-final match against Belgium in the first half and was substituted out of the game, which his side one 1-0.
Later, the intensiveness of his injury was realized after the South American nation's assessment on Sunday revealed the 26-year-old suffered a thigh strain, ruling him out of the Netherlands encounter.
OFFICIAL: #ARG midfielder Angel Di Maria has been ruled out of #WorldCup semifinal against #NED with a thigh injury. pic.twitter.com/BCVkep41Wt
— FootballFacts101 (@FootballFact101) July 7, 2014
"Angel has a Grade 1 injury. Of course he won't play in Argentina's next game. After that, we'll evaluate the situation day-by-day," Argentina team doctor Daniel Martinez confessed to reporters.
However, the former Benfica man could find himself back in contention for a starting eleven birth if his side were to triumph over Louis van Gaal's men on Wednesday, booking their spot in the final on June 13.
According the Spanish outlet AS (per 101 Great Goals), the Argentine will undergo stem cell therapy in order to "repair tissue, reduce pain and inflammation" for the first degree tear in the rectus femoris of his right leg, a treatment which reportedly helped Los Blancos ace before.
Fortunately for the two-time World Cup champions, the Di Maria loss was cushioned by the return from injury of their Manchester City star, Sergio Aguero.
The former Atletico Madrid man missed out on the round of 16 and quarter-final games with a muscle strain, which he picked up on Argentina's last group stage game against Nigeria, but looked positive in a Sunday training session.
"Sergio has practiced three times. He's ready to play," Daniel Martinez confirmed.
Aguero suffered a hamstring injury in the game vs Nigeria, keeping him out of Argentina's last two games
But could make a return to La Albiceleste's lineup after recovering from his knock
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