Manchester United would be willing to let Raphael Varane leave in January but only on a permanent deal, according to reports. The Red Devils are said to want between £17.4million and £26m for the defender who is attracting interest from Bayern Munich.
Varane has fallen down the pecking order at United in recent weeks. The Frenchman has not started a Premier League match since the visit of Crystal Palace on September 30.
Lisandro Martinez has been absent with a foot injury for over two months and won’t return until the new year. But Varane has still struggled to get into Erik ten Hag’s side in his absence.
Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans have been the preferred centre-back partnership of late, with Victor Lindelof also featuring. That has seen rumours of a potential move away in the upcoming transfer window.
Sky Sport Germany claims that Varane is unhappy with his situation at Old Trafford. United are aware and are said to be prepared to let him leave in January but will refuse any loan exit.
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United will only entertain permanent offers for the former Real Madrid star of between £17.4m and £26m. Bayern are monitoring Varane’s position but are yet to make any formal interest known.
Varane joined United in the summer of 2022 for a fee of up to £42m. He was a regular for Ten Hag in his debut campaign when he was free of injury.
The 30-year-old has had his fitness concerns this season but has largely been available since September. Ten Hag says Maguire took his opportunity to displace Varane when the latter was injured.
He said: “He [Maguire] took his chance. We were talking about injured players, he took his chance when Rapha was absent.
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“There is internal competition, which is normal in big clubs. When your chance comes, you must seize it and the others must fight to find their place.”
Varane’s absence from the United side hasn’t been a surprise for Gabriel Agbonlahor. The former Aston Villa captain recently outlined his view that the Frenchman was past his best.
He said on talkSPORT: “There’s a reason why Varane’s not starting, and Jonny Evans and Maguire are playing. I called it months ago that Varane is not the player that Manchester United fans think he is.
“He had an amazing career at Real Madrid – Real Madrid don’t let top players go. They let Casemiro and Varane go because they’re not at the top level anymore.”
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