Manchester United target Real Madrid star for January transfer

Jose Mourinho reportedly wants to sign Raphael Varane for Manchester United in January, but the French World Cup winner won’t come cheap.

Varane, 25, was in excellent form for France over the summer, leading his country all the way to the title.

At Real Madrid though, his performances have reflected those of the club. He’s looked shaky for the European champions this season, with the Los Blancos currently 9th on the LaLiga table having won just 4 of their 10 matches.

The latest humiliation was a 5-1 drubbing in the El Clasico at the Camp Nou. It was the final nail in Julen Lopetegui’s coffin, with Real sacking him the next day and replacing him with Santiago Solari as interim manager.

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Manchester United and Varane have a long history, with Mourinho trying to sign him in his very first season at Old Trafford. Real made it clear that he wasn’t for sale though, and he ended up helping them win 3 successive Champions League titles.

But the crisis at the Bernabeau, coupled with Varane’s poor form, could change things.

United themselves haven’t been great this season. Mourinho had made clear his wish to sign a new center back in the summer, and the board’s failure to do so has led to an uncharacteristically poor defensive performance by the Red Devils this season.

But after a string of good results recently, with the exception of the 1-0 defeat to Juventus at home, United are ready to back Mourinho with up to £100 million in January.

If they were to make a move for Varane, he would take up a sizable chunk of that budget, with  Sport reporting that he could cost €100 million, or £88 million.

Mourinho had a good relationship with the Frenchman during his tenure at Real. In fact, it was the Portuguese who signed him from Lens in the summer of 2011 for €10 million, and that could also be a factor.

Even though United may have to break their transfer record to sign him, Varane would be a great addition to the squad. He’s still only 25, but already has a load of experience both at club level and internationally, and would provide some much-needed steel and composure to their backline.