Manchester United could be set to pull off a Summer transfer coup by finally landing a player that’s been a target of the club since the days of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Real Madrid centre back Raphael Varane has yet to sign a new deal at the Bernabeu and the latest reports indicate the World Cup winner is considering a move away from the Spanish giants.
Marca reports:
The situation regarding Sergio Ramos’ contract has taken up much of the headlines at Real Madrid in recent weeks and months, but the club are also at risk of losing another key defender.
Raphael Varane’s current deal at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu runs until June 2022 and there are suspicions running through the club’s offices that the Frenchman isn’t planning on renewing it.
If, in the next few weeks, the World Cup winner reveals his intentions to run his contract down, Real Madrid will look to find a buyer for him in the summer to avoid losing him for free the following year. However, with a few months between now and the summer transfer window, the club’s priority is still to convince him to stay.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was reportedly keen on signing Dayot Upamecano last Summer but faces stiff competition from some of Europe’s leading clubs if he’s to pursue the RB Leipzig defender during the next window, with Bayern Munich favourites for the Frenchman’s signature.
That could pave the way for the Reds to focus on Varane who is despite having been around for over a decade is still only 27 years old, a relatively young age for a defender with so much experience and one who’s had unparalleled success both for Madrid and the French national team.
Should Varane decide it’s finally time to move on that naturally he won’t be short of suitors, but with question marks still surrounding who Harry Maguire’s best defensive partner should be then the former Lens man could be the perfect fit and become a priority for Solskjaer.
Varane would bring pace, experience and an excellent reading of the game to Old Trafford, not to mention being good on the ball, something that seems to fit in perfectly with Solskjaer’s ethos of trying to play out from the back.
It now remains to be seen whether Varane is keen on moving away from Spain and if Manchester is a destination, he’d finally be happy with.