While awaiting the completion of his transfer, Raphael Varane requested clips of Manchester United's porous set-piece defense from the 2020-21 season.

United scored 18 goals from dead-ball situations the previous season, but only six this year. Varane was only on the field for Aston Villa defender Kortney Hause's game-winning goal (which Edinson Cavani missed) and Brentford's consolation.

In a season marred by injuries, Varane contributed to United's worst defensive season since 1978-79. Varane was absent for the minimum four-goal thrashings by Leicester, Liverpool (twice), Watford, and Leicester, but was tainted in the worst of the lot against Brighton.  

Varane appeared to be fourth in Erik ten Hag's central defensive pecking order at one point during preseason. Lisandro Martinez was arriving as the left-sided central defender, Harry Maguire's status as captain ensured his position, and Victor Lindelof started all five available friendlies.

Less than a month later, Ten Hag was raving about "incredible" Varane and had made a U-turn on Maguire: "I don't believe that when you are captain, you are always guaranteed to play. Especially when Varane is also on your team.

Raphael Varane - Premier League vs La Liga

Varane addresses whether the Premier League is superior to La Liga.

We have alternatives. And you have already said… Varane… We decided in preseason to build him up physically due to his enormous size, so he got off to a slow start."

United have won all four games in which Varane has started, while conceding two goals in six hours. They have lost all three contests in which he did not start. Again, not a coincidence.

Martinez, a fan favorite who has quickly earned a chant to the tune of UB40's Kingston Town and the obligatory chants of "Ar-gen-ti-na," was named the club's player of the month for August, when Varane was the more deserving recipient. Martinez would likely concur.

Martinez wrote "Sos impresionate" on Varane's Instagram post celebrating the victory over Liverpool. Martinez's remark was accompanied by a love-heart eyes emoji, and after the defeat of Leicester, he wrote, "What a pleasure it is to play alongside you brother." Martinez must already be a prominent fan on Varane's page.

Varane has aided in strengthening the United defense

As a result of the awe he inspires in those around him, Diogo Dalot and Malacia frequently comment on Varane's posts. Varane and Martinez communicate with right-back Dalot in Spanish, as do Varane and Martinez. Varane has begun conducting interviews in English after opting for translated chats during the previous season.

Ten Hag may be disappointed that Varane began the season on the bench. Varane, a soft-spoken player, sat on the sidelines during the sloppy first half at Brentford before entering for the scoreless second half. He was able to pinpoint the problem.

"It's hard to explain why, but we didn't begin the games with the same intensity and fighting spirit. We were motivated, but it is difficult to explain why we began with so little energy.

"Football is about energy; it's about knowing when to push, when to remain calm, and when to attack."

Varane halts Diaz
Ten Hag noted the potential of Varane and Martinez in Martinez's debut against Rayo Vallecano: "I think it was a really good combination with Rapha, and I think they played really solidly, which was good. The question is how to integrate him into the team, but I believe he will do so quite well." Integration was resolved by recalling Varane.

Five days before the decisive victory over Liverpool, Ten Hag decided to replace Maguire with Varane, and in the last three weeks he has demonstrated that he is United's most important player. Varane is the player whose injury their fans fear most during this month's internationals.

"He was fit in the first games, but he wasn't always in the first period of preseason," Ten Hag explained, "so we're glad we built him that way, because when the team needed him, he was really there, and his profile, his stature, and what he's won in the past demonstrate that he can contribute significantly to his team.

"There is competition for the team, and we need that. We have to cover so many games, which we can do in a variety of formations, and we can see from game to game what we need, such as the Liverpool formation, or the Brentford formation in which we played with Varane and Maguire in the middle, so there are many options.

Six years earlier in Madrid, De Gea and Varane would have been teammates if not for a fax machine.

Six years earlier in Madrid, De Gea and Varane would have been teammates if not for a fax machine.

Varane's marginal role in preseason prompted unfavorable comparisons to Bastian Schweinsteiger, another illustrious name United paraded years later than anticipated.

Similar to Schweinsteiger, Varane's knee was a source of concern; United medical staff flagged an operation he underwent in 2013 during his medical, and the contract had to be redrafted, causing a nervous delay in the announcement of his signing.

Varane, who bid farewell to Real Madrid players and staff at their Valdebebas training complex and was already quarantined in England under Covid-19 protocols, could have returned to Spain, never to play for United.

Varane signed for Manchester United ten years later than Sir Alex Ferguson would have liked, and his unveiling on the Old Trafford pitch evoked memories of Bryan Robson's on-pitch signing in 1981 prior to United's rout of Wolves.