Reports in Spain have claimed that Manchester United’s attempt to sign Real Madrid’s Raphael Varane has been hit by a stumbling block – with the two clubs unable to agree on a fee.
Ole Gunnar Solskjær has made no secret of his desire to strengthen his defensive arsenal this summer, with Varane emerging as the red devils’ number one goal.
United had hoped to strike out a price deal for the Frenchman, whose contract expires in less than a year, but in Madrid-based publication AS reports that Real do not want to share with Varane unless their valuation of 70 million euros (60 million euros) is met.
Given that Premier League clothing currently refuses to increase its offer of € 40 million (£ 34.2 million), negotiations are said to have reached a dead end. With that said, it is worth noting that Varane’s departure will probably not be sung from the rooftops of the Spanish press – so the World Cup winner’s move in anticipation can conceivably be taken with a pinch of salt.
If an agreement is not reached in the coming weeks, AS’s report adds that Real Madrid are happy to keep Varane for next season – before they want to present an improved contract offer in an attempt to extend their stay.
Varane is said to be keen to move to Old Trafford – with an agreement in principle already reached between the two parties – but unless a “hopeful and excited” United up their offers, Real risk losing him for free next summer.
There is also further development from Marca, who say that United are in no hurry to force an agreement for Varane and are happy to offer their time.
Real holding companies are perhaps not surprising, given their Super League attitude in recent months. Los Blancos are financially a mess, so may feel they need to extract as much money as they can from United. £ 34.2 million is hardly a small amount of money, but with a move that Kylian Mbappe needs to be funded from somewhere, Florentino Perez may eventually have to go to bed and admit that it’s time to share with Varane.
