Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane has revealed he almost joined Manchester United before his move to Los Blancos in 2011.
The 21-year-old, one of the best young defenders in the world, told Telefoot discussions had taken place with the Red Devils about a switch from Lens in Ligue 1 to the Premier League. But in the end talks broke down and he ended up in the Spanish capital after being snapped up by Jose Mourinho for a fee of around eight million euros.
“We were close to an agreement with Manchester United. My mom speaks English and this facilitated the translation. There was also an interesting project [on offer] but I made a choice for my career,” he said.
Varane, who already has 17 caps for France, went on to talk about his ambitions for the future and said he wants to be considered one of the best in the world.
He stated: “I think I can go higher and mark my generation. I would be happy to tell myself I did the maximum and went as far as I could during my career.”
Since arrival in the Spanish capital, Varane has picked up winners medals in the Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey. He has scored six goals in 88 appearances for the club.
