Raphaël Varane has left his mark on more than one player in his career. Since announcing his retirement on Wednesday, the former French international has seen a shower of tributes fall on him. His former Real Madrid teammates, Sergio Ramos, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, have obviously joined in the game, as have several 2018 world champions. After Paul Pogba and Hugo Lloris, it was Blaise Matuidi who wanted to salute the career of his former teammate. “Huge, just huge. That’s how I define Raphael’s career. People don’t realize…”expressed the former Parisian in an interview with The Team.
“He started playing at 17 and everything he achieved after that was simply exceptional: establishing himself in such a big club, winning so many titles, putting in such great performances. Rafa is a great player, a great man too. A memory? But there are so many. I remember those moments when we had our backs against the wall to qualify for the 2014 World Cup. I also remember those moments of immense joy in 2018, but also those of suffering when he withdrew from Euro 2016. We went through great times, but also moments of sadness. But Rafa remained the same. I just say: hats off to the artist. I have rarely seen someone who was unanimously popular like him. A leader like you don’t really realize. In the locker room, he always had the words to remobilize everyone.» The two players will have spent 6 years together in the Blues during their career (2013-2019).
