Varane Reveals Why He Left Real Madrid After Winning 3 Consecutive Champions Leagues

One of the Most Unexpected Departures from Real Madrid in Recent Times Was Raphaël Varane. The former '5' of the Merengue team ended his time at the white club in the summer of 2021, at the same time that Sergio Ramos left the white club as a free agent. The first team lost its two starting center-backs, although it did so for completely different reasons.

After closing his chapter as a player for the white team, the most successful of his career, the French center-back headed to Manchester United to try his luck in the Premier League. His time at the Old Trafford entity did not go as well as many expected... and even led to the early retirement from professional soccer, a decision he made at just 31 years old.

But Raphaël Varane has revealed the reasons for that retirement and his striking and unexpected departure from Real Madrid. In an interview with the French podcast The Bridge, the former player reveals that he decided to leave the Merengue sports discipline because "he needed new challenges" as a footballer.

Raphaël Varane recalls that he experienced a particularly intense 17/18 season in terms of titles. While it is true that Real Madrid could not win LaLiga or the Copa del Rey that season, the Thirteenth came after defeating Liverpool in the final in Kiev.

Reason Revealed

"After winning the Champions League in 2018, we practically didn't celebrate it", recalls the former Real Madrid player. While it is true that those celebrations were overshadowed by the announcement of Cristiano Ronaldo's departure, the succession of three consecutive European Cups marked the squad. Additionally, Varane would end the summer of 2018 on a high note.

Because after winning the Thirteenth at the end of May, he headed to Russia to play in the World Cup: "then I won the World Cup that same summer," the former French center-back points out. The accumulation of successes with the white jersey, of great impact and in a very short period of time, left a mark on Raphaël Varane.

After two more seasons in which that winning pace declined considerably, Raphaël Varane decided it was time to seek other challenges. While it is true that this argument was then used as the main reason for his departure, it is confirmed almost five years after that event.

Be that as it may, Raphaël Varane will always have a place among the most recent legends of Real Madrid. After all, he was part of a winning cycle that has been impossible to replicate to date and is part of the golden pages of the white history.