Back in summer 2018, Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward was reportedly ready to sanction a £100m move for a World Cup winner – but that wouldn’t have been enough to capture him.
Since then, though, 28-year-old Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane has ran his contract down to just one more year remaining, which has seen the demanded price drop.
According to the Manchester Evening News, the Red Devils have launched a £50m bid but faced rebuttal with the Spanish side asking for £80m, despite the impending contract expiry.
The report details how Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side will have to add £30m onto that offer if they want to land the World Cup and four-time Champions League winner, who has been at the club for a decade, especially as fellow centre-back partner Sergio Ramos has also departed this summer.
To add, Varane performed well as France edged a 1-0 victory over Germany in the 2020 European Championships, giving Madrid the opportunity to maximise profit on him while his stock is high.
France’s Raphael Varane in contest with Germany’s Kai Havertz during the 2020 European Championships
United have been in the market for a defender for what feels like a very long time, with a long-standing interest in the Frenchman himself, despite Eric Bailly recently signing a new deal and Swede Victor Lindelof putting in a standout performance at the Euro’s against Spain.
Los Blancos has debts of €901m and president Florentino Perez has stressed they are unable to finance any marquee moves this summer, surely also opening the door for depatures and inspiring clubs like United to make moves for their desired targets.
Varane is a boyhood United fan whose hero was Rio Ferdinand, and earlier this year he rejected a big contract offer from his current side that included the club captaincy – so, United fans, do you believe you’ll see him in a red shirt, and is he the perfect partner for club captain Harry Maguire?
