The story could have been quite different. On Sunday, in an interview given to the Daily Mail, Raphaël Varane revealed that he had been close to signing with Manchester United in 2011, when the defender, who had just come of age at the time, was still playing at RC Lens. Finally arriving at the Red Devils in 2021, the now ex-French international had been approached by Sir Alex Ferguson himself when he was only 18 years old. But according to the Daily Mail, his transfer had been blocked by the presence of Chris Smalling on whom the Mancunian club was betting.
Varane therefore took the direction of Real Madrid before discovering Old Trafford. “I was very close to coming here,” he explains. I think we were okay, Lens and Manchester, but then, I don’t know, I think Manchester changed their minds. Another opportunity was about to come and the Bernabeu was not bad! »
Ferguson moved to Lens
“I’ve spoken to Sir Alex Ferguson since I arrived here but not about what happened then, it’s a long story and I didn’t want to say anything negative. I have too much respect for him, ”says Raphaël Varane. At that time, the future vice-captain of the France team had only 23 games in Ligue 1.
However, the legendary Mancunian manager had tried everything to attract the young French defender, even going so far as to make the trip to Lens to meet him and his family. At the same time, the name of Varane had reached the ears of Florentino Pérez in Madrid, thanks to a certain Zinedine Zidane.