Can't imagine how much wages he demands at Madrid. And how much we have to offer (on top of signing and sign off fees), that also offset the English tax to be more than what he'd get at Madrid.
Raphael Varane | Signed for United!
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
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Terrible signing.
I mean what has he ever won or been part of for the past 5 years?
Oh right...
I mean what has he ever won or been part of for the past 5 years?
Oh right...
Do not rate him at all, not at £40m not even at £25m! Utd's poor planning for targets in areas desperately in need of re-inforcements is shockingly bad.
City and Leic showed with Diaz and Fofana that exceptional talent at reasonable transfers can be attained but its now normal for Utd hierarchy to review gossip pages and then pick a signing out!
City and Leic showed with Diaz and Fofana that exceptional talent at reasonable transfers can be attained but its now normal for Utd hierarchy to review gossip pages and then pick a signing out!
I'll never understand this line of thought. It's like saying if we signed James Miller on a free we'd probably win the PL and Champions League.
How much did Dias cost?
Not really. He's a first XI player for a club who won 3 CLs on the trot.
@JPRouve said it's about a new experience. Of course he'll be paid as an elite centre back at a top club, regardless of where he goes.
Loads of shit players have won major trophies, it's a team sport. A vital cog in one side is a waste of space in another. We should know, we've bought a few of them.
We got Cantona after Leeds deliberated for 1 hour
The thing with Real Madrid is that their standard is insanely high. Any players deemed as surplus there could have still played at another big clubs somewhere.
Names like Makelele, Cambiasso, Walter Samuel, Samuel Eto'o, Van Der Vaart, Robben, Sneijder, even that rat Di Maria all are multiple titles winner and contributed heavily to their new club.
Now regarding Varane, he will be an excellent partner for Maguire. Judging from the potential targets circulating in the media I believe Ole is looking for a Sweeper type of CB, bit behind Maguire who acts like a stopper to deal with the threat first. Pretty much like Victor Lindelof's role now only the new partner SHALL BE: faster, better in aerial threat, and far more physical. Again this is why we are hearing the name likes Raphael Varane, Pau Torres, Jules Kounde instead of Sven Botman or Diogo Carlos.
Of course you wouldn't as, I never said the latter at all
And the former; equating Varane's role in that Real Madrid and France National teams vs Milner's role in his teams and in terms of what we require in terms of both player's positions and our needs, is quite misguided.
He's not the second coming of Beckenbauer but is a genuinely World Class CB, and at 40-60m it would certainly improve us at CB.
Obviously Varane was just a bit part player in all of that...
"New challenge" for player at their peak usually equates to wanting to get paid more. But he could be an exception though.
Feel like we could potentially get him for around 45-50m plus addons
Milner is not first choice for Liverpool, and hasn't been for two years. He's a sturdy back-up and utility player. Great to have in the squad, but Liverpool would have achieved just as much without him.
Back on topic, if we can reach a compromise between our 40mil valuation of Varane and Madrid's 60mil, I say do it. At the end of the day he's significantly better than what we've got, and the last two days have shown how defensively poor we are without Maguire. The only real downside is given the financial climate, if the cost takes money away from other signings we need.
I believe we can reach a compromise in the middle around 50m but whether we are willing to do that is another thing
On paper he'd be brilliant for us. But the talk of lack of assertiveness and his head not being in worries me.
Covid time. 50 million for a 28 year old. Big gamble IMO
I don't think so. One of the best defenders in the world, would automatically improve our defence significantly. I think a lot of people consider it a gamble because of his injury record, but over the last four seasons he's played over 40 games consistently, so that's really a thing of the past.
I think we've got to get out of the mindset that most top players are past their best by 30. If you look around world football, most top players are maintaining a high level well into their 30's, often up to the age of 34-35. I see no reason why we couldn't get 4 good seasons out of Varane if we signed him.
I think the issue more people have is that his form has dropped off the last two seasons. Does he just need a new challenge to get back to his best, or is it a sign that he's declining early (either physically or mentally)? He has been playing at the top level for a long time so he wouldn't be the first to have that issue.
Plus the fact that he does have history of struggling when Ramos isn't there beside him leading the backline. That wasn't the case in the World Cup of course, but it has happened quite a bit for Real.
While this is true, it all depends on the desire of the individual. When you have achieved everything you could have in your profession like Varane has, it might be difficult to have the same burning desire as an up and coming star. Especially as he would be leaving Madrid which many footballers consider as the pinnacle of football clubs. It all depends on the individual’s mentality and motivation and that is something only Ole and the scouting team can assess.
How long back was it when he was that? Serious question. I remember him clowning around in last season's CL. Doesn't seem to have been around this year.
It puzzles me why people are worried about signing Varane - jeez the guy is at least one level above Lindelof and a much needed improvment on defensive set-pieces. And please people don't bring up the "injury-concern" - the guy has averaged about 42-43 matches in the last 5 seasons.
28 year old coming to a new country. There will always be doubt in my mind. Lindelof is not the standard. He's bang average. Even Bailly would be an upgrade on him if he had some composure.
It’s pretty weird reading all of these comments. Our squad is crying out for experience, especially in the defence.
Even if he is «past it», lets say at 50-75% of his prime, he still brings experience and physical attributes that makes him , at worst, on par with Lindelof, which means we can rotate more effectivly.
I mean, would anyone chose Lindelof over Varane in Real Madrids side? Hell, Maguire probably wouldnt get in there.
Also, another reason he is suited for us is that he had played much of his career alongside a somewhat slow but physical and «leader» of the the defense. So he would take less time to beeing used to playing with Maguire.
One could look at Thiago Silva , who is much more «past it» , but has done well in Chelsea
I mean, would anyone chose Lindelof over Varane in Real Madrids side? Hell, Maguire probably wouldnt get in there.
Also, another reason he is suited for us is that he had played much of his career alongside a somewhat slow but physical and «leader» of the the defense. So he would take less time to beeing used to playing with Maguire.
One could look at Thiago Silva , who is much more «past it» , but has done well in Chelsea
People that are frowning upon this signing considering the current state of our defense and the lack of options on a transfer market are weird.
Varane isn't world-class but he is very close, and he is probably the best defender available. He is tall, good in the air and comfortable on the ball - exactly what we need
also fast which we definitely need next to HMS Maguire
I wouldn't get too hung up on the Milner reference, that was just an extreme example. I could just have easily said we shouldn't target Kane as he's never won anything, which would obviously be just as misguided.
My point was that team trophies won with his former club shouldn't be that high on the criteria when looking for a new CB. It doesn't guarantee success. More important is how the new CB's skills compliment Maguire and the style of the team.
At the end of the day, our record with experienced players coming from a better team having won it all already is very poor. A lot of players lose their edge after that move, and they've rarely been able to re-capture that in Manchester. Given it looks like Varane has already lost his edge long before any move, it sounds like quite a big challenge. I thought Varane was brilliant at his peak, but it doesn't matter how talented they are if they've lost that spark. We're not a good enough team to carry those kinds of players, only for them to turn it on in the big games.
Don't forget he also a bit part player in the France World Cup winning team.Obviously Varane was just a bit part player in all of that...
Each year I see a player becomes too old earlier and earlier. He's younger than VVD and our resident Madrid fans (who actually watch the player week in week out) have confirmed he's still quality.
As a defender he's entering his peak years. Thiago Silva has still performed well for Chelsea and he's 36, a whole 8 years older than Varane yet the Caf thinks he's past it.
The mind boggles.
As a defender he's entering his peak years. Thiago Silva has still performed well for Chelsea and he's 36, a whole 8 years older than Varane yet the Caf thinks he's past it.
The mind boggles.
I'm really not sure that those generalisations should exist at all. We shouldn't sign players from Argentina because our record with them is dodgy (bye-bye Agüero). We shouldn't sign any Germans or anyone from Bayern because they've fecked us with Hargreaves & Schweiny (bye-bye Kroos), we shouldn't sign Real Madrid's rejects (bye-bye Robben, Sneijder) etc. Those should be treated by case to case basis. Should we have signed Cavani after Sanchez' fiasco? It depends only on Cavani and Sanchez really has nothing to do with it.
it’s about risk management.
you can argue Silva is far less of a risk now than 5 years ago. He’s on a free transfer and a one year contract. 5 years ago he would have cost a big fee and been on a 3-4 year contract - the financial commitment is huge.
clearly every player should be judged on his merits.
I’ve personally got no issue with Varane, and think he would be a good signing. My concern is whether he’s actually available and we are being used to drive up his contract as has happened so many times before.
a lot of clubs and thus fans have been burned by players who have either flopped massively or signed big contracts and gone to pot very quickly.
the likes of Bale, Rooney. Sanchez, Ozil and Hazard mean that inevitably transfers will be treated with caution. Players don’t work out, that’s life, but when players of a certain age don’t, and they are on such enormous salaries - they then become a financial burden.
And are there better, safer options on the market?
And what about all those 28-ish years old players whose transfers worked out? And expensive youngsters that turned out to be nothing but a significant financial burden?
To be fair, two (Basti and Di Maria) is a small sample. And both had extenuating circumstances.
Has he deteriorated physically? I don’t know but, if not, a new challenge may be just what he needs to get the spark back.
At 28 he may have 5 good years ahead and could well be improving for the first two or three years.
His physical condition is the most important thing in my opinion and I haven’t got the data!
you read the part where I said I’ve no issues with his transfer and that I think he would be a good signing?
Yeah, it wasn't a response only to you but an extrapolation on my previous point towards a general sentiment that can be clearly observed in this thread.
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