AS.com

Alcoyano midfielder Julio de Dios has declared that Ángel Di María insulted him during the second leg of the Copa del Rey tie on Tuesday, and said the Argentine had "sullied" the profession of football and the name of Real Madrid.

De Dios explained: "I went to tackle him cleanly and then he gave me a kick. I heard him shout "failure" at me, although I didn't hear all of what he said because I was so engrossed in the game, but my team-mate Javi Lara heard it all and had a go at him, and told me everything he heard.

"It is players like this that give footballers a bad name and mean there will be fewer and fewer Madrid fans. After all this, I don't want to be a Madrid fan anymore. You feel very disappointed when people behave like this."

De Dios came through the ranks at Barcelona's youth academy 'La Masía' but is a self confessed Real Madrid fan. He also denied that he went to swap shirts with Di María after the game, as the Argentine claimed in an interview.

"I never spoke to him after the game, I went towards Cristiano Ronaldo and he gave me his jersey. Di María was one of the first to leave the pitch."

De Dios advised Di María to "take a look at himself in the mirror", and added: "He has disappointed me as a person and as a professional."