When Raphael Varane announced his retirement, many were surprised, even shocked. One of the best defenders of today, a World Cup winner with France, and a player in his prime. At first glance, everything seemed fine, but it turned out that little was actually right.His transfer to Como hinted at this. His knees could no longer keep up with the intense rhythm of the Premier League, so Varane had to move to a significantly less demanding environment. Partly because he would play just once a week, the French defender accepted the offer from an ambitious Italian club, a newly promoted team in Serie A. However, his start with Cesc Fabregas’ team marked the end of Varane’s career.”I hoped to continue playing, but when I got injured for the first time on July 11th, I realized it was over. I knew it wasn’t a serious problem, but the fact that it was my left knee was a sign. My left knee had to ‘compensate’ for the right one since 2013, and thanks to it, I managed to find balance. But when your left knee tells you it’s had enough of carrying the load, you have to listen,” Varane said in his interview with L’Équipe.##NAJAVA_MECA_8414687##The legendary Paolo Maldini used to say that if you go for a slide tackle, it means you’ve already made a mistake, and Varane, even if he wanted to, couldn’t rely too much on this defensive technique.”Sometimes I would tell myself, ‘How would it be with two legs…’ I take all of this lightly, but also because I had this problem, I developed a kind of ‘art’. For years, I didn’t slide tackle. I waited for the right moment to go into a duel, to stop, to accelerate, or to start running before the attacker… I wouldn’t have managed it without this knee. Since I was 20, I’ve been playing with a ‘sword of Damocles’ hanging over my right knee. It became strong over time, but less mobile, and my left knee handled everything related to strength. How did I play 11 years with one knee? With a lot of effort, sacrifice, care, and learning to manage balance.”As is often the case with athletes, they rarely open up and don’t want to admit they have problems. They frequently try to hide such things from the public. Varane did the same.”Psychologically, when I stepped onto the field, I couldn’t tell others or even myself that I only had one knee. In fact, if you just looked at the knee, you would be concerned. I knew I could get injured, that I could break the knee, but we live with the risk. We don’t risk our lives like gladiators, but we play with physical problems, that’s who we are. From a young age, we toughen up, playing with pain throughout our lives.”##EDITORS_CHOICE##He blames this on the increasing number of matches, which has led active players to consider striking in recent weeks. It’s justified, if you ask Varane.”Maybe we can’t change the world, but we should do some things differently than we’re doing now. Some things are getting out of control, and the situation could escalate. I’m also talking about players’ mental health, not just physical. There are fewer and fewer creative players, everything is about physicality. Football should be a game based on mistakes, but now there are few because everything is robotized. A coach who allows you to move and create is Carlo Ancelotti, different from the new generation of coaches.”He says that at one point, he wanted to finish his career at Manchester United, but…”At the beginning of last season at Manchester United, I said I would like to end my career there and continue that adventure. However, it didn’t happen, and the summer was very eventful. I was looking for something special and found it in Como. I ended my time at United with a win in the Cup, but I already knew that the club’s project wasn’t for me. Como wasn’t economically attractive or exotic, but on a human level, everything made sense. It still does, as I will remain with the club. My future is in Como. I still have a lot to give to football. I am searching for creativity and freedom, not robotic and always balanced movements,” Varane concluded.🚨🇫🇷 Raphael Varane: “There is much less creativity, fewer geniuses on the pitch.” “Everything is robotic, there are game patterns that make it difficult to shake up a team’s block. There is much less freedom.” (L’Equipe) pic.twitter.com/Tc3a6wgy2L— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) October 16, 2024
