Raphael Varane admits he was surprised by Marcus Rashford’s decision to leave Manchester United and join Aston Villa in the January transfer window.
Rashford had attracted interest from several clubs last month including AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona but ended up joining Villa on loan for the remainder of the season.
Varane, who ended his playing career in September, spent three seasons alongside Rashford at United and feels the 27-year-old has made a ‘positive’ step by leaving United.
However, the World Cup-winning defender says he expected Rashford to move to a team outside of the Premier League.
‘Staying for so many years with this level of intensity and demand, years when the overall atmosphere is often negative because performances are below expectations, it’s very, very difficult,’ Varane said in an exclusive interview with The Athletic.
‘For him to change his environment is positive. He is someone who loves the club and who gives everything for the shirt.
‘But I’m surprised he’s going so close to Manchester. I imagined him going further than a few kilometres away.’
Varane also said he was ‘surprised’ by United’s decision to give Erik ten Hag a new contract last July, four months before he was sacked by the club after a poor start to the season.
‘He [Ten Hag] always needed an example of a player who was alone the entire time he was at Manchester,’ Varane said.
‘He did that with at least one important player on the team. He was always in conflict with certain leaders of the group. That is his way of managing.
‘I was surprised he stayed.
‘The connection with the group no longer existed.’
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