Raphael Varane names big problem at Manchester United - he didn't face it at Real Madrid

Raphael Varane has lifted the lid on his time at Manchester United and identified one of the biggest problems he experienced during his time at the club.

The 31-year-old spent three seasons at Old Trafford before he was released on a free transfer last summer by former manager Erik ten Hag. He left having scored two goals in 92 appearances and playing a key role in both an FA Cup win and a League Cup victory.

Varane admits he was surprised to see Ten Hag handed a contract extension after their FA Cup final heroics last summer, a decision that backfired when the Dutchman was sacked just a couple of months into the new season. It was not the only thing that surprised him about his time at the club though, and the World Cup winner has identified a big problem that he did not face during his time at Real Madrid.

United lack structure

Speaking in an interview with The Athletic, Varane criticised the lack of structure at Old Trafford and the confusing club hierarchy that contributed to their struggles both on and off the pitch.

“Even from the inside as a player, there wasn’t a clear structure on how things were going to work," he said. "There hasn’t been a fixed methodology for years. At Madrid, they have a defined way of doing things at every level of the club. At Manchester (United), it was not clear or defined enough to know how to recruit, how to play, how to communicate. There weren’t the same procedures, processes, structure.

“It’s not one person’s responsibility. That’s the problem — we don’t even know whose fault it is. It has to be in the overall structure of the organisation. There were too many people involved in the decision-making process, so we didn’t know who was really making the decisions. I can’t say who was responsible, I don’t know. It was a bit of everyone and a bit of no one.

“At Madrid, you can see that for years there has been a framework. A player is added, some leave, but there is always a solid foundation. When you recruit young, talented players, they have to learn before they can play. It gives them time to develop. When I arrived, at the age of 18, I had no responsibilities in the dressing room. I was just there to learn. At United, they can recruit a very expensive young player and immediately play him, with all the responsibilities in an extremely difficult league. He’s got a huge weight on his shoulders straight away.”