Manchester United have had a £50m offer turned down for Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane, according to reports in the local media.
Despite the 28-year-old having just one year remaining on his contract, the La Liga club are said to be holding out for around £80m, which has led some fans on Twitter to respond with incredulity:
what are these lot smoking…….. £80m for one year left on his contract.
— Lord Akram (@akrxm94) June 17, 2021
£80m… just bring Ramos on a free?!?
— ▪️ (@LeoRxformed) June 17, 2021
Kounde it is then
— Francis • ? (@FrancisUTD_) June 17, 2021
£80 mil with a year left on his contract??
— Umair (@UmairImtiyaz9) June 17, 2021
50 million is more than enough for a guy with one year left on His contract…
— ? (@UtdJoan) June 17, 2021
They can’t hold out indefinitely and they’ll never sell him for anything close to that amount.
— Steve H (@SteveH4422) June 17, 2021
Are these Spanish clubs crazy or something
— Vibe King? (@iam_Vectra) June 17, 2021
£80M for a player who can sign a pre-contract for any club in 6 months time for FREE… pic.twitter.com/K1LwOItviC
— Surinder Raj Singh (@Rajplayer) June 17, 2021
What r they smoking
— AbdullMalik (@IamAbdullmalik) June 17, 2021
80M is too much, we move on
— Zack (@ZMulera) June 17, 2021
Real’s current asking price is not a realistic figure, considering Varane’s contract situation, so the Red Devils would probably be better off moving on to other targets.
Chelsea, Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain are also believed to be interested in the France international but it would be surprising if any team was willing to shell out £80m.
Real are said to be determined to prevent Varane from leaving for nothing next year, though, so United could well revisit the deal later on in the transfer window if the Spanish club are willing to reach an agreement for a lower fee.