Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has praised summer signing Raphael Varane for his mentality and the influence he’s having on his team-mates.
The France international joined Man Utd from Real Madrid this summer after a great career at the Bernabeu, and he’s already had an impact on his team-mates, according to Solskjaer.
Much has been made of the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo in this United squad, with the legendary Portugal international back at Old Trafford for a second spell after a late summer move from Juventus.
Ronaldo and Varane played together at Real Madrid for many years, and Varane is certainly another of the Spanish giants’ key figures from that hugely successful side that won four Champions League titles in the space of five seasons between 2013 and 2018.
This inexperienced MUFC squad will surely benefit from having these kinds of characters around, and Solskjaer was sure to praise Varane as well as Ronaldo, as quoted by the Manchester Evening News.
“The more quality you add to the group [then] the more healthy competition and leaders who they look up to,” Solskjaer said. “I think seeing Raphael and Cristiano coming in, it’s raised everyone’s eyebrows because they are winners, they have won everything there is to win and they put demands on themselves which the young boys, the rest of the team, they look at them and think that is how you stay at the top.
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“We have got loads of good players. Handling the pressure is one of the things that you have to do as a Man United player, expectations and pressure, you’ve got to relish it and embrace it and enjoy it and Cristiano does.
“Rapha is a winner. Jadon is a winner. He has come into the group really well and he enjoys this kind of pressure, but I think when you have got quality players – Mason, Jadon, Jesse coming on, Anthony coming on, Cristiano, Bruno – there will be space for others all the time.”