Raphael Varane lifts lid on why he left Manchester United: 'The project didn't suit me'

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Evening Standard

·17 October 2024

Raphael Varane lifts lid on why he left Manchester United: 'The project didn't suit me'

Former Real Madrid defender has now retired after suffering another knee injury with Como in Serie A

Varane left the Red Devils on a free transfer at the end of last season after three years at Old Trafford following his £42million move from Real Madrid.

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But despite initially wanting to extend his stay in Manchester, the France World Cup winner felt that he did not fit the club’s new project under Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS team.

“At the start of my last season at Manchester United, I was already telling myself that I would have liked to finish there, to extend the adventure [there] a little further,' Varane told French publication L'Equipe.

Departure: Raphael Varane spent three seasons at Manchester United before moving on in the summer

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“It didn't happen and the summer was very eventful. With United, I finished with a victory in the FA Cup, but I already knew that the club's project didn't suit me.”

Varane struggled with injuries during his time at United and admits he has had to deal with knee problems throughout his career.

“Since the age of 20, I’ve played with a sword of Damocles hanging over my right knee,” he added.

“Managing pressure, knowing my body, knowing when to push the machine, I’ve mastered it perfectly. But over the last three years, I’ve only injured my left knee.

“My right knee had become strong, but less mobile, and my left knee did everything, for power, starts, and impulses. Physically, this injury made me go back into a spiral, and the balance between sacrifices and pleasure was no longer balanced.”

Varane joined Como this summer but has now retired after injuring his knee on his debut for Cesc Fabregas’ side in the Coppa Italia.

“I was looking for something special, and that's how I found Como,” he said.

“Como was a project that stood out, it wasn't exotic nor financially [rewarding] but humanly it made sense, and it still does, since I'm going to stay by their side.

“I also wanted to play only once a week. After the pre-season, the family was supposed to follow me to Italy, but when I got injured on August 11, I knew right away that it was over. I was sure of myself, because I had anticipated it.”