Raphaël Varane, good or bad idea?

Good idea under conditions

At a time when Racing is approaching a real revolution with the departure of Franck Haise and while many executives are supposed to leave Artois, I do not see the arrival of a player of the stature of Raphaël Varane as a bad idea. As we saw on the Reims side, Will Still is not afraid to rely on experienced players. He notably did this successfully for two seasons with Yunis Abdelhamid (36 years old). If Jonathan Gradit were to join his mentor at Nice in addition to the departure of Kévin Danso (see Facundo Medina), I would not be against the arrival of the former Manchester United player.

It will depend on the salary and his physique. Obviously, I’m not crazy and, in these times of budgetary rigor and with the uncertainty of TV rights, Raphaël Varane will have to be reasonable by accepting emoluments light years away from those he received at the end of his contract in England (more than €20 million per year). I nevertheless think that Varane is not a man to chase after fees but rather to prefer the sweetness of his favorite club to Saudi petrodollars or the American dolce vita…Yes, I have an idealized vision of the child of Gaillette and I hope I am not mistaken on this point.

Beyond the financial, I also think that it will be necessary, before any signature, to carry out numerous medical examinations. At 31 years old, and having already been retired from the French team for two years, Raphaël Varane has still been injured often in recent years, whether in Manchester and at the end of his career at Real Madrid. . I’m not fooled: Merengue and Red Devils would never have let a player slip away at his “prime” but I still think that in Ligue 1, in a championship where Dante easily reaches 40 years old, a Varane – even a little aged – has a lot to offer. Obviously provided you don’t have Samuel Umtiti’s knees…

Alexandre CORBOZ

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Bad idea unfortunately

For the symbolism and the history, it would be wonderful if Raphaël Varane returned to where it all began. But if we remove the sentimental side, I think it’s a bad idea for the 2018 world champion to return to La Gaillette this summer. We will start by talking about the level of play of the 2018 world champion. For me, he has been on the decline since his last year with Real Madrid and his three seasons spent with the Red Devils have not necessarily reassured me. Due in particular to the numerous concussions he had during his career, Raphaël Varane plays softer and takes fewer risks than before in duels, and that is completely understandable. But it’s not the level of play that worries me the most because he still has the ability to perform at a more than adequate level in Ligue 1.

The thing that bothers me the most is the injuries. During his three years with the Red Devils, Raphaël Varane missed 48 matches due to physical problems or illness and had no less than eight different injuries, from the groin to the foot. And as they say, things won’t get better for the former Real Madrid player, who is turning 32. So if it’s to have a player who is often in the infirmary, you might as well not recruit him.

And regarding the salary, I am not so naive, I think that the former Mancunian is still waiting for a big salary. This is why, beyond knowing whether it is a good or bad idea for RC Lens to bring back the child from Gaillette, I think that the latter will choose a more exotic destination than the north of the France. And if Raphaël Varane asks for a very high salary from the Lensois leaders, that does not fit with the new Sang et Or project, who want to considerably reduce their payroll. These are the several points which make me doubt the relevance of the recruitment of the former French international.

Fabien CHORLET