Raphael Varane has revealed that he had a very tense relationship with Erik ten Hag during their time together at Manchester United, admitting that he struggled to adapt to Ten Hag’s rigid style.
The French defender, who joined United from Real Madrid in the summer of 2021, found it difficult to adapt to Ten Hag’s highly structured playing style.
This approach contrasted sharply with the more fluid systems he was accustomed to at Santiago Bernabeu under Zinedine Zidane and Carlo Ancelotti.
In his debut season in England, Varane played for multiple managers, including Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, interim boss Ralf Rangnick, and caretaker Michael Carrick.
He had to adjust to varying coaching philosophies, but the shift was especially drastic when Ten Hag took over permanently in the summer of 2022.
In an interview with The Athletic, Varane explained, “It was the opposite (to Real Madrid) with fairly rigid patterns of play defined in advance. There was very little flexibility in terms of adapting to the pitch. The game plans were very precise, with a lot of information. It was different.”He added, “We could say to each other, ‘You have to do it more like this,’ instead of a system that was a bit constrained by the coach’s instructions.”
Varane described his relationship with Ten Hag as “very tense at times.” He noted that while there were moments when the manager made an effort to listen to players’ feedback, there were also times when he made decisions without considering their feelings. “So there were ups and downs. It was complicated at times,” he said.
Despite their differing philosophies, Varane initially played a key role in Ten Hag’s first season at the heart of United’s defense. However, between October and mid-December, he did not start any matches, despite being fully fit.
The Dutch manager attributed Varane’s absence to “tactical reasons,” but the defender reported receiving little direct explanation for it.”We had a robust discussion.
We both expressed our thoughts, but then I didn’t play for almost two months,” the 2018 World Cup winner revealed. “I said I disagreed with certain aspects of how things were done regarding the relationship between him and the team. It wasn’t good for the team because some players were not satisfied. It negatively affected the relationship with the coach. He said, ‘OK, I hear what you said,’ and after that, I didn’t play.”
United’s won the 2024 FA Cup final over Manchester City but the win was overshadowed by uncertainty surrounding Ten Hag’s future. Even the manager himself admitted in a post-match interview that he was unsure whether he would remain in charge after a disappointing eighth-place finish in the Premier League.
However, following a season review led by new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS sporting director Sir Dave Brailsford, the club decided to continue with the beleaguered manager.
Varane expressed surprise at this decision, stating, “I was surprised he stayed. The connection with the group no longer existed.”
Eventually, Ten Hag was replaced by Ruben Amorim last October, but this managerial change has done little to improve United’s fortunes, as the club currently sits in 15th place in the Premier League standings, just 12 points above the relegation zone.
