From being benched by Harry Maguire, to being Manchester United’s best defender

It hasn’t been easy for Raphaël Varane to settle at Manchester United. The former Real Madrid centre-back was signed last summer for a fee of €40 million as he was looking for a new challenge in his career after winning everything with the Spanish giants. He chose Old Trafford as his destination as he was expecting to be the leader of the defense.

During his time at Madrid, he became one of the best defenders in the world and he even won the FIFA World Cup with France in 2018 with him being a crucial part of that team. However, he was always in Sergio Ramos’ shadow because the former Real Madrid captain always had the spotlight on him.

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For that Varane wanted to be that leader of the defense in another big club like Manchester United. Unfortunately, his first year in England wasn’t what he or the fans expected since he struggled with injuries. In addition to that, Harry Maguire was untouchable in the centre-back position because he was the team’s captain.

In April, Erik ten Hag was appointed as the new Manchester United manager and Varane looked at this as the perfect opportunity to start over. However, the new boss made him do a specific training program during pre-season in order to get him back to optimal fitness levels. This worried the Frenchman since he wasn’t training with the rest of his teammates.

Trust the process

The new season began and the new signing Lisandro Martinez and the team’s captain Harry Maguire played the first two games ahead of him. However, when he was given the chance, he dropped Maguire to the bench and formed a great partnership with Martinez. He quickly became Erik ten Hag’s favorite defender because of his physicality and leadership.