Liverpool and Manchester United have both been on the lookout for a new center back, with Dayot Upamecano linked to both and a new name, Raphael Varane, has now emerged as being available.
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First up, let’s focus on Upamecano to Liverpool (they seem like the frontrunners, for now) as Premier League clubs trying to sign the French international have been handed a boost
According to BILD in Germany, Bayern Munich want to sign Upamecano, 22, but can’t afford him. After he signed a new contract at RB Leipzig in the summer, it is believed he has a release clause of $48 million which kicks in during the summer of 2021.
That said, the report states that Upamecano could be sold in January providing his release clause is met.
The timing of that update is ideal as Liverpool clearly have a defensive nightmare with Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez out long term and Joel Matip struggling with injury. That leaves youngsters Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams, plus midfielder Fabinho who can fill in at center back.
Liverpool were said to be planning to spend big on a partner for Virgil van Dijk in the summer of 2021 but could they now try and sneak ahead of their rivals such as United to sign the dominant defender?
Varane is now an option at center back
Speaking of Manchester United, they don’t have many problems when it comes to the center back position.
The main issue they have is that most of their center backs aren’t up to scratch. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer pushed hard to sign Upamecano in the summer but it didn’t happen, however this latest update will buoy United’s hopes.
However, the Manchester Evening News has a story which suggest that Raphael Varane could be available to buy this summer.
Varane, 27, is contracted to Real Madrid until the summer of 2022 and although the classy center back has suffered from a slow start to this season, his four UEFA Champions League titles speak for themselves.
The French international was wanted by Man United 10 years ago, and as recently as 2018 when Jose Mourinho was still in charge, and it appears he could become available in the next six months.
Varane would be a totally different option to the power of Victor Lindelof, Marcos Rojo, Phil Jones, Harry Maguire and Eric Bailly, United’s current center backs. And Varane alongside Maguire would work really well, on paper. Maguire would take first knock and Varane could sweep up and start attacks with his wonderful array of passing and his penchant for stepping into midfield with the ball.
It works well at Real Madrid alongside Sergio Ramos, right?