On September 25, Raphaël Varane decided to say stop. Mined by injuries, the Frenchman, who had signed in Come for a few weeks, said it was time to stop his career as a professional footballer. “It is with immense pride and a feeling of accomplishment that I announce my retirement from the game that we all love. I retire to the highest standard, I want to get out of the big door not hang on to the game. You need a big dose of courage to listen to your heart and instinct. Desire and needs are two different things. I fell and resurrected a thousand times, and this time, it's time to stop and hang up my crampons with my last match by winning a Trophy in Wembley ”he explained on his social networks. Almost five months later, the former player of the Racing Club of Lens still bathes in the world of the round ball.
An early retirement
Indeed, since October 19, it is “Member of the Board of Directors, adviser to the development of youth, education and innovation of products” Coming. In parallel, he punctually held a role of educator with young people the Italian team. This summer, he will welcome a training camp for young people this summer, combining football, education and culture. “I like to build projects that have a vision, a strategy to build innovative things. It is this innovative side that I like. We want to create something where they (young people) can really understand how to progress and offer them a unique experience that will mark them as players, but also as people. Transmit certain values that will serve them well whatever happens ”said the 2018 world champion at The Athletic.
A media to which he gave a long interview, where he leafed through the souvenir album of his long and rich career. Inevitably, there was talk of Real Madrid. A club in which he had his hours of glories but which he decided to leave after a decade to challenge himself. “I felt like I couldn't do more than what I had already done, that I couldn't evolve as I wanted. Madrid was exceptional, but I had already done everything.He finally joined Manchester United. But everything did not go as planned among the Mancunians. The first year, he experienced three different coaches, namely Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Michael Carrick (temporary) and Ralf Rangnick. The following season, Erik Ten Hag arrived at the head of the Mu first team. A trainer totally different from what he had known before, especially in Madrid with Carlo Ancelotti, who was close to his players according to him, or Zinedine Zidane, who gave a lot of confidence to his troops.
He balances on eth
ETH did not really convey the same impression. “It was the opposite (from Real Madrid) with fairly rigid game patterns defined in advance. There was very little flexibility in terms of adaptation on the ground. The game plans were very, very precise, with a lot and a lot of information ”. Accustomed to being independent, especially with the Blues, the former defender did not feel at ease with the Dutchman. “It was different. We could say to ourselves: “You have to do it more like that”, instead of a system that was, say, a little blocked by the coach's instructions. “ A coach with which his relationships were not very good. “It was very tense sometimes. Sometimes he made an effort to listen to the feedback from the players. Sometimes he made decisions without listening to players' feelings. So there were ups and downs. It was complicated sometimes. “
Especially when the Dutch coach declared her since Varane tumbled into the hierarchy of central defenders last season. “We had a lively discussion. We said to ourselves certain truths, but then I did not play for almost two months. I said that I did not agree with certain ways to do concerning the relationship between him and the team. It was not something I thought I was good for the team because some players were not at all satisfied. It was not good in terms of relationship with the coach. He said; “Ok, I hear what you said” and after that, I didn't play anymore. “ He is not the only player to have had problems with ETH, since Cristiano Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho also had clashes with him. According to Varane, Ten Hag wanted to make examples with these two players because he “Wanted to gain respect by fear, perhaps.”
Dutchman has had Turkish heads
He specifies: “He always needed an example of a player who was alone all the time he was in Manchester. He did it with at least one important team player. He was still in conflict with certain group leaders. It's his way of managing. “ Raphaël Varane, who had the feeling that Ten Hag used him again only because he had only him on hand because of the many injuries in the English group, chained the meetings before finding the infirmary. This was often the case during his career. “It's not just the problem of Manchester United, it's a global problem. Things are getting worse and more. It is a system that put the players in the red zone. ” The ex-player of Real Madrid, who did not necessarily digest the way of making his former coach, still kept some good memories of him especially during the victory in FA Cup against Manchester City.
“I must also recognize what has been positive (in ten hag management). He gave me the peace of mind necessary to come back from my injury and compete in the FA Cup final. He was counting on me. It was very positive, because it allowed me to play my role in the team. We had ups and downs. I can't say that everything was bad. There were complicated moments. I wanted the best for the team. Sometimes I said things to the coach, not for me, but for the team, or because the players felt things. The FA Cup final had nothing to do with proving something to it. My motivation was to succeed with the team, to make supporters happy and especially to live this feeling of entering the field as a gladiator who returns victorious. It is the best feeling.Before this success, Varane explained that Ten Hag did not know if he was going to stay with the arrival of Indian.
Surprising behind the scenes of Mu
“I was surprised that he stayed. The link with the group no longer existed (…) I did not know who would be the coach. I didn't know if they wanted to change the team a lot or not. I had no visibility, so it's difficult to get involved when you don't know exactly what you are committed to. “ He therefore left freely. “It was not a problem”said the Frenchman, surprised by the management of MU on a daily basis. “Even from the inside, as a player, there was no clear structure on how things were going to work. There has not been a fixed methodology for years. In Madrid, they have a defined way of doing things at all levels of the club. In Manchester, it was not clear enough or defined to know how to recruit, play, how to communicate. There were not the same procedures, the same processes, the same structure. ”
He continues: “It is not the responsibility of a single person. This is the problem: we don't even know who comes back the fault. It must be in the overall structure of the organization. There were too many people involved in the decision -making process, so we didn't know who really made the decisions. I can't say who was responsible, I don't know. It was a bit of everyone and a little person. In Madrid, we see that for years there has been a framework. A player is added, some leave, but there is always a solid base. When you recruit talented young players, they have to learn before they can play. It gives them time to develop. When I arrived, at 18, I had no responsibility in the locker room. I was just there to learn. In United, they can recruit a very expensive young player and make him play immediately, with all the responsibilities that result from it in an extremely difficult championship. He immediately has a huge weight on his shoulders. ”
A necessary change
He concludes: “You have to be able to build a long -term strategy while resisting daily pressure and matches every three days. This is what is difficult. For years, supporters have been waiting to win immediately. Those who make the decisions to achieve these goals want to reach them right away. In the storm, you have to be calm and know that you are building something. Sometimes when the storm arrives, you have to make quick decisions, change something. At Real Madrid, people accept pressure and know how to live with it. When I say that the players are in the best conditions in Madrid, it is because we try to protect them from this pressure. There is already enough pressure on the ground, with supporters, media and social networks. This is why there was a somewhat protective atmosphere around players in Madrid. It is the club where there is undoubtedly the most pressure. But whether it is the coach or the way the club manages difficult situations, it is really protection against this pressure. In Manchester, that was not the case. “
Despite all this, he keeps a deep attachment to MU and his supporters. “It is an exceptional, magical and unique club. I have so much respect and love for the club that I can only be positive. Even when I say things that are not going well, it is well intentioned and constructive. I don't want to point someone. I just want good luck to the club and I hope he will succeed. ” For his part, Raphaël Varane continues his way on the other side of the Alps. “Côme is a special project. It is a different vision. It is a question of ambition, but also of values. It is also a very special setting, a place where I can make my contribution and help develop the club. ” The 31 -year -old Frenchman will have something to do, with all the experience garnered in the France team, as well as to RC Lens, Real Madrid or even Manchester United.
