In the latest transfer news Raphael Varane has been linked with a move to both Manchester United and Liverpool.
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The Real Madrid and France center back is a man in demand and Varane has less than 18 months left on his current contract with the reigning Spanish champions.
Let’s take a look at this juicy rumor as the bitter rivals are set to battle it out to improve their central defensive options.
Raphael Varane to Manchester United or Liverpool?
According to the Manchester Evening News, Real Madrid would be open to selling Varane, 27, this summer.
The Frenchman has won four UEFA Champions League trophies and three La Liga titles during his 10-year stay at the Santiago Bernabeu, but contract negotiations aren’t going well.
Per the report, Real Madrid are keen to cash in on Varane this summer rather than risk losing the World Cup winner for nothing from January 2022.
Do Manchester United need a new center back? They’ve been linked with a move for Dayot Upamecano, Kalidou Koulibaly and many others in the past few months and this is clearly an area Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants to upgrade.
Harry Maguire will be his first-choice center back for years to come and it is believed that United want an upgrade on his central defensive partner Victor Lindelof. Eric Bailly and Phil Jones have both been injury prone, while Axel Tuanzebe is a very good back-up option, but they need extra quality in defense.
Defensive errors have cost United points this season and that is why they aren’t serious title contenders. Varane would change that.
What about Varane to Liverpool?
A report from Spanish outlet AS claims that Liverpool are also monitoring Varane closely, and would be keen to make a move for him this summer.
With Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez expected to be fit for next season, Jurgen Klopp will have his first-choice center back partners back.
However, it’s clear that loan signing Ozan Kabak has struggled early on in his Anfield career, while deadline day signing from Preston, Ben Davies, has picked up a few small injuries. Joel Matip has suffered with injuries too and Nat Phillips has done okay whenever he’s filled in, but center back is clearly an area where Klopp needs to add extra quality.
Could Varane and Van Dijk play together? It would be harsh on Gomez, but there’s no doubt that would be a pretty unstoppable duo at center back. Varane would be able to sweep behind Van Dijk and the French center back will have plenty of options this summer as Real Madrid decide to cash in.