Varane opens up on Sir Alex Ferguson meeting and says Man Utd move was "destiny"

Manchester United defender Raphael Varane has opened up on a meeting he once had with Sir Alex Ferguson and how that impacted his decision to join the club.

Varane joined the Red Devils in the summer transfer window for £41million from Real Madrid, seeking a new challenge.

The four-times Champions League winner injects huge quality into the United defence, which, in truth, has looked relatively shaky since Ferguson's retirement.

But it appears that instead of ruling the roost with Real, Varane could have helped to steady the ship when Ferguson left.

Back in 2011, Ferguson travelled to Lille to meet with an 18-year-old Varane, who instead opted to join Los Blancos.

Raphael Varane has opened up on why he joined Man Utd and a meeting he had with Sir Alex Ferguson ( Image:

SIPA USA/PA Images)

But 10 years on, it appears that the Frenchman could never quite get the thought of a move to Old Trafford out of his head.

"It was a special moment for me and my family," Varane told Sky Sports of meeting Sir Alex.

"It's amazing to meet a person like him at 18. You know, after that, it's your destiny. Ten years in Madrid and now I'm here."

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Varane is a player who has been there and done it - multiple Champions League titles, a World Cup winner and various domestic titles in Spain.

But the 28-year-old is not content with his abilities as a player just yet, and wants to push himself to get even better in the Premier League.

"That's my mentality," Varane continued. "I want to be better. I want to improve. I want to push myself.

Varane revealed that Paul Pogba played a role in his move too ( Image:

Manchester United via Getty Imag)

"This is a new challenge for me. A different competition, a different mentality, a different atmosphere. It's all new for me but I've enjoyed every day so far.

"It's a big challenge to get Manchester United back to the top but I feel people want to win, people want to do great things with this club, and that's a big motivation for me."

It wasn't just Ferguson who seemed to have an influence on Varane's summer switch to United though.

The France international says that he also spoke to fellow countryman Paul Pogba about life at Old Trafford, and is delighted to be playing alongside him every week now.

"Paul spoke to me about the club, about the atmosphere, about the expectations," Varane added.

"Of course, he is a great player. But he also has very good, positive energy. He is a leader for the group. I've known him for a very long time so I'm happy to play with him."