Raphael Varane has expressed his delight with how well the French team dealt with his Real Madrid team mate Cristiano Ronaldo in the friendly against Portugal.
Les Bleus won 2-1 in Paris with goals coming from Real forward Karim Benzema and one-time Los Blancos target Paul Pogba, Portugal grabbed a goal back with 15 minutes to go but the French held on to record the win.
And speaking after the game, Varane told journalists he was proud of how his fellow defenders kept Ronaldo quiet. The 21-year-old has seen the striker at his devastating best this season, with the Ballon d’Or holder having scored 17 goals in 11 club games so far.
“We controlled Cristiano Ronaldo well,” the France centre-half told journalists. “We all know his fantastic ability and the fact he didn’t score is good for us.”
Ronaldo’s hat trick for Real against Athletic Bilbao last weekend drew him level with Alfredo di Stefano for the record number of hat tricks for the club – 26. He has scored 50 goals or more for Los Blancos in each of the last four seasons, and will easily surpass that number should he keep up his scoring rate.
Speaking about the game in general, Varane added he was pleased with things overall. He stated: “It may have been a friendly but you saw the intensity in this match and it was a real international fixture – it’s always difficult to play against Portugal. We have carried on from our World Cup performances and we’re playing good football.”
