Trained at the Lens Racing Club, Raphael Varane did not wait long to leave the Sang et Or. After twenty-four games played in the 2010-2011 season, the tricolor defender gave in to the Real Madrid Sirens. To convince him, the Merengues at the time counted on the persuasion strength of a certain Zinedine Zidane, then adviser to the Madrid President Florentino Perez. The first contact with “Zizou” and Raphael Varane was told by the latter.
Guest of the show “The Bridge” broadcast on YouTube And co-animated by Sébastien Abdelhamid and Aurélien Tchouameni, Raphael Varane returned to the day he received a mysterious phone call. “At first actually, when he calls me, it was a period when it was hectic in my life. I was super young, I spent the bac. At the same time, there is a transfer that was looming. »» A general context which made the future 2018 world champion may not have all his focused attention on the call he was about to receive.
“When he calls me, it was evening, I was tired, there had been training, all that. So at the beginning I do not calculate too much, I received a lot of requests. And after a while, I recognize his voice … so I have a white … I say wait … I recognized his accent. I say to myself: 'I know this voice'. And after when I ask myself what said: 'Wait … I don't calculate Zizou there? I am a phew '. So (…) I am a little panic, I say to him: 'Can we remember later? I am busy '. »»
Huge surprise for Varane
In the words of Raphael Varane, the people on the set did not hide their astonishment, almost their amazement to see the one who was still only a hope of tricolor football thus respond to the tricolor legend. But for Zinedine Zidane, the reaction was obviously not the same, as the former defender finished: “He said to me: 'OK, no problem, we remember later'. And then after we talked, we saw each other again. But I was in shock actually. (…) I went to see my brother, I said to him: 'You're not going to believe me. I just hung to Zizou '. It was crazy. »»
Zinedine Zidane and Real Madrid will not take long to convince Raphael Varane to join them. He will spend ten years in the “Casa Blanca” and he will win almost everything. Three Spanish championships, four Champions Leagues, a Spanish Cup or two Spanish Super Cups. He will then leave Real to get involved with Manchester United where he will play for three seasons. He will end his career in Come where he will only play one match.
