Patrick Rees
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is currently planning to make a move for Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane which is just a part of a trio of defensive deals which could probably happen in the upcoming summer.
According to the Spanish outlet Don Balon, Varane – who has made just 16 La Liga appearances this season – has gathered interest from Jose Mourinho who signed the Frenchman during his Real Madrid stint. Manchester United’s interest in acquiring a centre-back is well and truly understood given that the likes of Chris Smalling and Phil Jones have failed to impress the Portuguese. However, the duo’s form isn’t the only concern for United.
The aforementioned source confirms that Paris Saint-Germain are keen on reinforcing their defensive personnel and for that matter, they have identified Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo as a potential arrival. The Argentina international has already missed a major chunk of the current campaign due to an injury and although he is now fit to play, he hasn’t got any notable minutes under his kitty.
Having said that, PSG owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi is now looking to take perfect advantage of this entire situation and would easily offer a bid of around €30m for the versatile defender. So if the Argentine indeed decides to make a move, United will be short on numbers and this is where Raphael Varane comes into the frame.
The Frenchman has been a long-term target for Manchester United and this could well and truly be the time we acquire our man. So why would Real do business this time around? Well, the answer given by Don Balon is that Real president Florentino Perez is now looking to bring a new centre-back partner for Sergio Ramos and for that, he has identified AC Milan’s Leonardo Bonucci. So this completes the aforementioned trio of defensive deals.
Bonucci decided to move to AC Milan last summer from Juventus but with the Rossoneri failing to find a perfect footing, the Italian centre-half might very well look to seal a move away. An offer from Real Madrid would simply be too tempting to let go of. And if that happens, Varane’s game time would simply suffer and that would force him to reunite with Jose Mourinho.
However, acquiring Varane won’t be cheap as a report from Diario Gol has suggested that the Frenchman would cost around £52million.
It sure seems like decent business for Manchester United but it now remains to be seen as to what extent these reports are true.
