Real Madrid have confirmed Raphael Varane's departure. Varane has left Real Madrid after 10 trophy-laden years to join Manchester United for a reported €40 million on a four-year deal.
Raphael Varane's departure comes just a few weeks after Real Madrid parted ways with club captain Sergio Ramos. Varane's stature at Real Madrid might not be as big as Ramos' but the career paths were the same. Both Varane and Ramos joined Real Madrid as teenagers and worked their way up. While Ramos left at the age of 35 Varane is still very much in his prime.
Real Madrid is arguably the best club in the world. The Los Blancos often have the Galactico policy where they buy world-class players in their prime. Raphael Varane's career graph as a Real Madrid player is a perfect example for young players who come to Real Madrid. Recently Madrid have tried to buy more young players and have groomed academy products in order to develop them into world-class players.
Raphael Varane joined Real Madrid in 2011 after playing only one season for the Lens first team. He was scouted by none other than Zinedine Zidane himself. Varane made his debut under Jose Mourinho and instantly became a favourite of the Bernabeu faithful. Mourinho showed immense trust in the youngster often starting him in important games ahead of his experienced defenders.
Raphael Varane wasn't a first choice centre-back until 2017. The Frenchman was behind Sergio Ramos and Pepe behind the pecking order. The defender was patient and worked very hard to earn his place in the first team. Varane was a silent warrior in Real Madrid's Champions League three-peat winning team playing the entire match in the 2017 and 2018 finals.
In his ten years at Real Madrid Varane has won fourteen major trophies including four Champions Leagues and three La Liga's. Varane's raw pace and Physicality has always him a difficult player to go past for many world-class forwards. His partnership with Sergio Ramos was a perfect blend of two world-class defenders with very different and distinct skill sets.
According to reports, Varane has left Real Madrid in search of a new challenge. There is no better challenge than the Premier League. Manchester United have waited a long time for a world-class centre-back. It's been almost a decade since United last won a league title. Now with the signing of Varane along with Jadon Sancho makes Manchester United an instant favourite to win the League. At the age of 28, Varane has at least four to six years left where he can play at the highest level.
Varane has also achieved great success with the France national team. He was the only French player who played every single minute of the 2018 World Cup that France won. The centre-back was also named in the team of the tournament. Varane may have left Real Madrid in his prime but having achieved so much success before turning 28 at a club like Real Madrid is a feat which not many players achieve.
