Long-term £50m Man Utd target among four put up for sale by Real Madrid

Manchester United are back on the trail of Raphael Varane after reports in the Spanish media claimed the defender had surprisingly been told he can leave Real Madrid.

The France defender was a big favourite of Mourinho during his time in charge at the Bernabeu and United have frequently been linked with his signature.

While United had previously been told Real had no intention of cashing in on the former Lens centre-half, a season of disappointment so far at the Bernabeu appears to have signalled a change of heart.

According to Don Balon, Varane is one of four players who have been told by Real president Florentino Perez that they will be made available for transfer in January as the club plans to shift a number of big names from the squad.

Karim Benzema, Keylor Navas and Achraf Hakimi are the other first-teamers the Spanish outlet claims will be allowed to leave. Costa Rican keeper Navas is likely to attract a big-money bid with the club sanctioning his departure in the wake of the €25million arrival of Kepa Arrizabalaga from Athletic Bilbao.

And while the exits of Benzema or Hakimi won’t come as an enormous surprise, news that Real will consider offers of £50million for Varane will raise an eyebrow.

The 24-year-old has played over 200 times for Real since Mourinho brought him to the club in 2011 and has become a firm fans’ favourite.

But with the club looking to bring in a new big-money forward – the likes of Mauro Icardi, Harry Kane and Paulo Dybala have all been mentioned as targets – the club are looking to balance the books.

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