[A-man]

Madrid offered him a new contract, that was reliably reported, and if I am correct, they more or less met what he would demand, Varane just wanted to move on, after spending 10 seasons with Madrid (almost his entire pro career), winning everything there is to win, he probably thought that a new challenge will be good for his career.

Madrid basically knew that Varane wanted to leave, so they went all in with Alaba who was a free agent, then this season went for Rudiger too, they basically got 2 CBs worth 50M each for free, which makes it look like Madrid didn't suffer much from the departure of Ramos (left as free agent) & Varane (on his final year and sold for under 40M) in the same summer.

My real concerns with Varane is that he is yet to show what he is known for, which was consistency and solidity as a defender, with Martinez's arrival, he will need to do his best to get a starting spot ahead of Maguire and Martinez.

What I’ve read, it was quite the opposite. Alaba got an insane contract with a salary 2-3 times of Varane’s. This rightfully pissed Varane off and he wanted to negotiate a new contract. The new contract he was offered was an improvement but far from what United offered, which basically meant he doubled his salary when he moved to United. RM did not really seem to put up a fight over him and seemed ok with Varane leaving. That’s how I understood it but I guess nobody could know for sure. I was surprised they let him go so easily, but maybe they needed something else after Ramos left.

Bale had a lot of fitness issues when he left Spurs to join Madrid, Hazard who was playing week in and week out with Chelsea had also a lot of injuries since he went to Madrid.

Varane injuries and fitness issues last season were not the norm if you see his last 4 seasons with Madrid where he was virtually available for every game, and another thing is that the worse injury he got was with the NT, my hope is that our medical team can spot the root cause of it and find a solution for it.

I still think the root cause for last season was that he missed the whole pre season. We will see this season if it improves. He suffered a lot of injuries in the past that Madrid managed to handle, let’s hope we also can manage that

 

[Bondi77]

Not really, he's a world cup and 4 time champions league winner. You pay premium wages to those sorts of players.

Would have been nice if we got him before he won or should I say before he played in a brilliant attacking side that won all those trophies but I suppose we are stuck paying him a wage that they were not prepared to.

 

[OmarUnited4ever]

What I’ve read, it was quite the opposite. Alaba got an insane contract with a salary 2-3 times of Varane’s. This rightfully pissed Varane off and he wanted to negotiate a new contract. The new contract he was offered was an improvement but far from what United offered, which basically meant he doubled his salary when he moved to United. RM did not really seem to put up a fight over him and seemed ok with Varane leaving. That’s how I understood it but I guess nobody could know for sure. I was surprised they let him go so easily, but maybe they needed something else after Ramos left.

It would depend on who you believe more, but logically thinking, Varane was not some bench warmer for Madrid, he was a "Regular Starter" and a "Key Player" for a Madrid side that won multiple CLs, and it is difficult to believe that Madrid will lowball him and offer Alaba (who isn't originally a CB) twice what they would offer Varane, I mean if we are talking VVD or someone like that, then that is understandable, but Alaba was never an Elite CB who you would have to break the bank for to bring in (he is an elite LB).

I still think the root cause for last season was that he missed the whole pre season. We will see this season if it improves. He suffered a lot of injuries in the past that Madrid managed to handle, let’s hope we also can manage that

You could be right actually, that year, it was the Euros, and after that a holiday with then a transfer to United, moving to another country, quarantining, and all that meant that he was not in tip top shape to start the season.

on the bolded, he was indeed injury prone during his early seasons, but his last 4 seasons with Madrid(2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 & 2020-21) he missed a total of 12 games only, which is an excellent record of being fit and available, yet last season he missed 16 games due to injury, and it could be due to many reasons, one you already mentioned earlier (zero pre-season work).

 

[MadDogg]

What I’ve read, it was quite the opposite. Alaba got an insane contract with a salary 2-3 times of Varane’s. This rightfully pissed Varane off and he wanted to negotiate a new contract. The new contract he was offered was an improvement but far from what United offered, which basically meant he doubled his salary when he moved to United. RM did not really seem to put up a fight over him and seemed ok with Varane leaving. That’s how I understood it but I guess nobody could know for sure. I was surprised they let him go so easily, but maybe they needed something else after Ramos left.

Real had been offering Varane a new contract for a year or so before they signed Alaba. There were rumours they were even willing to give him the captaincy as a further sweetener after Ramos left. Apparently he was not only turning down the contract offers, he wasn't even coming to the table to negotiate as he'd already made the decision he was ready for something new. That put Real in a simple position of either selling him for a fee or losing him for free in 12 months time, so with us giving quite a big offer they decided to take it without any real fight.

 

[A-man]

It would depend on who you believe more, but logically thinking, Varane was not some bench warmer for Madrid, he was a "Regular Starter" and a "Key Player" for a Madrid side that won multiple CLs, and it is difficult to believe that Madrid will lowball him and offer Alaba (who isn't originally a CB) twice what they would offer Varane, I mean if we are talking VVD or someone like that, then that is understandable, but Alaba was never an Elite CB who you would have to break the bank for to bring in (he is an elite LB)..

on the bolded, he was indeed injury prone during his early seasons, but his last 4 seasons with Madrid(2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 & 2020-21) he missed a total of 12 games only, which is an excellent record of being fit and available, yet last season he missed 16 games due to injury, and it could be due to many reasons, one you already mentioned earlier (zero pre-season work).

I think Real Madrid wanted someone like Alaba, that’s why they paid som big money. It is hard to argue that they did a mistake by letting go of Varane and bringing in Alaba in as they won both CL and La Liga.

I think RM found a way to manage his injuries. Ok on paper he didn’t miss many matches but if my memory doesn’t fail me I remember they rested him in some matches as well. He had one (1!) pre season training with RM followed by quarantine in England and then straight in to the PL with high tempo. Not the best prep.

Real had been offering Varane a new contract for a year or so before they signed Alaba. There were rumours they were even willing to give him the captaincy as a further sweetener after Ramos left. Apparently he was not only turning down the contract offers, he wasn't even coming to the table to negotiate as he'd already made the decision he was ready for something new. That put Real in a simple position of either selling him for a fee or losing him for free in 12 months time, so with us giving quite a big offer they decided to take it without any real fight.

All reports I’ve read claim that the contract(s) he wa offered from RM, all were very far from acceptable and far away from what he wanted in terms of salary. When Alaba was signed he got a fat sign on bonus plus a much higher salary. I think they wanted to keep him, but not at the salary he demanded. Only United offered that.

I could of course be wrong, but this is how I have interpreted thebsituation

 

[Fortitude]

I find it bizarre some of you are so eager to write him off.

 

[criticalanalysis]

Real had been offering Varane a new contract for a year or so before they signed Alaba. There were rumours they were even willing to give him the captaincy as a further sweetener after Ramos left. Apparently he was not only turning down the contract offers, he wasn't even coming to the table to negotiate as he'd already made the decision he was ready for something new. That put Real in a simple position of either selling him for a fee or losing him for free in 12 months time, so with us giving quite a big offer they decided to take it without any real fight.

This pretty much.

All reports I’ve read claim that the contract(s) he wa offered from RM, all were very far from acceptable and far away from what he wanted in terms of salary. When Alaba was signed he got a fat sign on bonus plus a much higher salary. I think they wanted to keep him, but not at the salary he demanded. Only United offered that.

I could of course be wrong, but this is how I have interpreted thebsituation

IIRC even in the Varane transfer thread, you seemed very intent to believe and peddle this 'Varane didn't get the contract he wanted, RM didn't want/value him anymore and only came to Utd because he's here for the money' even though this has been disputed many times.

@JPRouve, who is basically the resident French football expert has repeatedly said, he's turned down RM's offers over the years and contract way before Alaba was in the equation and had always wanted to try something different.

It's really odd. I remember you also questioned Varane's passing ability, believing it to be inferior to Lindelof and there would be a big question mark over his elite aerial stats that wouldn't translate to the premier league.

 

[izak]

Is he injured again??

 

[A-man]

IIRC even in the Varane transfer thread, you seemed very intent to believe and peddle this 'Varane didn't get the contract he wanted, RM didn't want/value him anymore and only came to Utd because he's here for the money' even though this has been disputed many times.

@JPRouve, who is basically the resident French football expert has repeatedly said, he's turned down RM's offers over the years and contract way before Alaba was in the equation and had always wanted to try something different.

It's really odd. I remember you also questioned Varane's passing ability, believing it to be inferior to Lindelof and there would be a big question mark over his elite aerial stats that wouldn't translate to the premier league.

As I wrote he turned them down as no contract met his demands.

 

[GledTheRed]

I find it bizarre some of you are so eager to write him off.

We've seen him play.

 

[OmarUnited4ever]

I think Real Madrid wanted someone like Alaba, that’s why they paid som big money. It is hard to argue that they did a mistake by letting go of Varane and bringing in Alaba in as they won both CL and La Liga.

I think RM found a way to manage his injuries. Ok on paper he didn’t miss many matches but if my memory doesn’t fail me I remember they rested him in some matches as well. He had one (1!) pre season training with RM followed by quarantine in England and then straight in to the PL with high tempo. Not the best prep.

First, if a player like Alaba is a free agent, every top club in Europe would want try to sign him, he is an Elite LB and a capable CB, and can even function as a DM, and Madrid did not do anything wrong with Varane, he wanted to leave, and they tried to keep him, but couldn't, that is all there is to it, it's not that deep really, and I do not understand what you mean by the bolded bit, every player is rested when they need it, it is normal, again, the guy was playing 42+ games a season during the last 4 seasons with the Madrid ,these are basically 90mins games, not mere appearances, he played as much as others in the team like Casemiro or Benzema so I don't get your argument that Madrid managed him, they didn't need to do that, he was fit and available, those are facts that are verifiable stats wise, and I distinctly remember him playing all the time with Madrid too as I watched Madrid when United is not playing (the only football I watch is United, Madrid and Inter Milan), what I also remember was Bale being injured quite often for example.

 

[MadDogg]

As I wrote he turned them down as no contract met his demands.

There were numerous reports that one of the things that was frustrating Real is that he wasn't even making demands. He simply didn't want a new contract as he was ready to try something new.

 

[A-man]

First, if a player like Alaba is a free agent, every top club in Europe would want try to sign him, he is an Elite LB and a capable CB, and can even function as a DM, and Madrid did not do anything wrong with Varane, he wanted to leave, and they tried to keep him, but couldn't, that is all there is to it, it's not that deep really, and I do not understand what you mean by the bolded bit, every player is rested when they need it, it is normal, again, the guy was playing 42+ games a season during the last 4 seasons with the Madrid ,these are basically 90mins games, not mere appearances, he played as much as others in the team like Casemiro or Benzema so I don't get your argument that Madrid managed him, they didn't need to do that, he was fit and available, those are facts that are verifiable stats wise, and I distinctly remember him playing all the time with Madrid too as I watched Madrid when United is not playing (the only football I watch is United, Madrid and Inter Milan), what I also remember was Bale being injured quite often for example.

During Varane’s early years at RM he was injuries a lot and he was talked of as an injury prone player. Somehow they (RM including Varane himself) managed to work through that with good physio I guess, but if my memory is correct, he was also rotated/rested some games. I never said Benzema wasn’t rotated, I mean he’s had his problems with injuries so makes sense to rotate him. Point is RM managed to turn around his misery from being injured a lot to not being injured anymore.

 

[Ayoba]

I see we have our new scapegoat for this season.

 

[OmarUnited4ever]

During Varane’s early years at RM he was injuries a lot and he was talked of as an injury prone player. Somehow they (RM including Varane himself) managed to work through that with good physio I guess, but if my memory is correct, he was also rotated/rested some games. I never said Benzema wasn’t rotated, I mean he’s had his problems with injuries so makes sense to rotate him. Point is RM managed to turn around his misery from being injured a lot to not being injured anymore.

Fair enough, whether it was Madrid that did something to turn it around for Varane or he himself got over his injuries are if no importance, since at least we can establish and agree that Varane, for multiple years, had an excellent record of being fit and available for selection and played a lot of football in those years for Madrid & France.

Last season though, he was injured quite a lot, maybe due to no pre-season, or being overplayed (playing with United and France NT), or other reasons, hopefully this year, he is in a better condition fitness wise, because he will need to be fit and available to compete with Maguire who is always fit and available, and against Martinez, who is the manager's signing.

 

[Revaulx]

I see we have our new scapegoat for this season.

Maguire last season; Varane this. Who’s going to be next?

 

[Revaulx]

I find it bizarre some of you are so eager to write him off.

Yes I agree. It’s fair to say that he hasn’t lived up to the hype of his being a massive upgrade on our existing defenders, and his injury record has been a concern, but he’s hardly been a Lovren or a Mangala. Maybe it’s Maguire fans trying to take the heat off “their” boy?

Let’s see how he does under a decent manager following a proper pre-season. If he continues to be injury prone we’ll be stuck with him in any case, given his huge salary.

 

[AjaxCunian]

Yes I agree. It’s fair to say that he hasn’t lived up to the hype of his being a massive upgrade on our existing defenders, and his injury record has been a concern, but he’s hardly been a Lovren or a Mangala. Maybe it’s Maguire fans trying to take the heat off “their” boy?

Let’s see how he does under a decent manager following a proper pre-season. If he continues to be injury prone we’ll be stuck with him in any case, given his huge salary.

Hasnt been much better than Mangala or Lovren either. He's more going in that direction than he is Van Dijk or Dias I'd say.

 

[roonster09]

Yes I agree. It’s fair to say that he hasn’t lived up to the hype of his being a massive upgrade on our existing defenders, and his injury record has been a concern, but he’s hardly been a Lovren or a Mangala. Maybe it’s Maguire fans trying to take the heat off “their” boy?

Let’s see how he does under a decent manager following a proper pre-season. If he continues to be injury prone we’ll be stuck with him in any case, given his huge salary.

Add Lindelof fans too.

Tbh he was good when he played, his poor performance was at the end of season and it was shit. It was mixed season, as usual people love to rewrite the season based on last few performances.

 

[Revaulx]

Hasnt been much better than Mangala or Lovren either. He's more going in that direction than he is Van Dijk or Dias I'd say.

Bah! He was poor towards the end of the season, certainly. But he’d had plenty of decent performances before then.

 

[Revaulx]

Add Lindelof fans too.

Tbh he was good when he played, his poor performance was at the end of season and it was shit. It was mixed season, as usual people love to rewrite the season based on last few performances.

If he’d started off poor and got better, some people would still judge him on his earlier poor performances. Fans of other players will always find something to slag off their rivals; it gets exceedingly tiresome.

 

[Marwood]

I see we have our new scapegoat for this season.

A scapegoat is a singular point of blame. One individual or thing that is blamed for everything.

But Aamost every player we have is slated on here.

So no, he isn't the new scapegoat. He's just joined in with the rest as another player criticised.

And I think rightly so. At some point he has to be a full time footballer for us or leave.

 

[Amarsdd]

Again, what is this nonsense about you have to be a Maguire fan or a Lindelof fan to be unsure about Varane? Can anyone with a straight face say he had a good last season, anything close to expectations? With issues of reliability due to injuries as well, there's bound to be questions whether he can be a regular starter.

 

[roonster09]

If he’d started off poor and got better, some people would still judge him on his earlier poor performances. Fans of other players will always find something to slag off their rivals; it gets exceedingly tiresome.

Yeah, it's repeated pattern in many threads.

 

[AjaxCunian]

Bah! He was poor towards the end of the season, certainly. But he’d had plenty of decent performances before then.

And they had decent performances too, fact is, they were nothing special and often enough poor, and especially Mangala and Varane came from La Liga with big fees.

 

[JJ12]

Every time I see his thread at the top I assume its another injury

 

[Sandikan]

In the hype of last summer, who thought we'd be spending 60m on a fella to replace Varane, when Maguire had the stinker of all seasons.

We'll have to watch it all pan out of course, but even for us, it'll be insane to have a guy on a rumoured 350k a week benched regularly.

 

[Betson]

Varane in an interview a few weeks ago admitted he did not have a great season but was hoping with a full injury free preseason behind him now that we would see the real Varane at Old Trafford this season .

Of course a few days later he was reported as injured again and sitting out some training sessions.

 

[VivaRonaldo85]

Happy to give him this season but it’s hard to not have the feeling Madrid saw is coming and knew they were selling us a crock. We were desperate and fell for it. Hope he proves me wrong this season but I have my doubts.

 

[mu4c_20le]

Happy to give him this season but it’s hard to not have the feeling Madrid saw is coming and knew they were selling us a crock. We were desperate and fell for it. Hope he proves me wrong this season but I have my doubts.

I'd be very surprised if the club didn't know this. The fact that we kept Bailly and lindelof suggests they were supposed to be rotated

 

[VivaRonaldo85]

I'd be very surprised if the club didn't know this. The fact that we kept Bailly and lindelof suggests they were supposed to be rotated

But there’s having a player for tactical rotation and then there’s one with a dreadful injury record which negates the tactical decision making powers a manager would want for certain games.

 

[mu4c_20le]

But there’s having a player for tactical rotation and then there’s one with a dreadful injury record which negates the tactical decision making powers a manager would want for certain games.

It's actually not that bad, he hasn't had a serious injury since 2018

 

[FatTails]

Some insane takes in this thread. He’s class, but injuries have so far made his time here miserable. He’s had no rhythm.

I am starting to get pessimistic about the likelihood of seeing him get a long run in the team. Hope he can string some games together and build on that.

 

[Sid234]

I dont see Varane staying back as a bad thing- I see it as a player who is not at full fitness/Match sharpness for the season and EtH wants to give him 60+ mins of football. Same with Shaw too I suspect.

I am not reading too much into the squads beyond the starting XI vs Atletico starts vs Brighton.
(Assuming it will be DDG - Dalot/Maguire/Lindelof/Malacia - Fred/McT - Sancho/Bruno/Rushford - Martial)

There are others in the team (Shaw, Varane, AWB) who need to get to higher level of sharpness and we're using the Rayo game to do that.

 

[Stacks]

Some insane takes in this thread. He’s class, but injuries have so far made his time here miserable. He’s had no rhythm.

I am starting to get pessimistic about the likelihood of seeing him get a long run in the team. Hope he can string some games together and build on that.

he's calm on the ball and a good passer. Not the most aggressive, strong or stand out in anything defensively really during the games he played in. One of those ones where the rep gives him higher ratings than what we actually saw with our eyes.

 

[::sonny::]

Always wrong sign a 28 yo player

 

[golden_blunder]

I think he is the 3rd or 4th highest earner at the club on 350k a week....absolutely mind boggling!!!

We should ask him to reduce his wages; defer some and start playing him as a winger

 

[Real Name]

Always wrong sign a 28 yo player

Yup, well known fact at 28 your legs are gone.

 

[Borys]

I can't get rid of Smalling on the ball flashbacks after that first half vs RV...

 

[Yagami]

I can't get rid of Smalling on the ball flashbacks after that first half vs RV...

It's what I've been saying. It's why Maguire will start over him.