Raphael Varane could struggle to adapt to ‘rigours of Premier League’ just like ex-Manchester United

Raphael Varane may struggle to cope with the robustness of the Premier League at Manchester United, Danny Mills fears.

The Red Devils confirmed they had agreed a deal in principle to sign the 28-year-old, who has agreed an initial four-year contract at Old Trafford.

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Everyone is intrigued to see how Varane will get on in England

Varane joins United as one of the most accomplished defenders in world football, having helped the Spanish giants win a glut of silverware, including the Champions League four times and three LaLiga titles.

He will form what should be one of the most solid defensive partnerships in the top-flight with Harry Maguire, who flourished with England during Euro 2020.

However, Mills has questioned his suitability to the division, citing other greats of the game who have struggled to cope with the intensity of English football.

“You just don’t know with foreign players coming in,” Mills told Drive.

Di Maria fell out of favour quickly at Old Trafford and never settled in England

“He’s had his injury problems – when you look at his average he plays around 20 games a season in LaLiga.

“Ten years there and 210 league games, so he’s obviously had his injury concerns.

“A lot of those games are against seriously inferior opposition. This not the standard of the Premier League, robustness or intensity of the Premier League.

“I’m not doubting whether he’s a fantastic player but I’m just questioning whether he’ll be able to cope with the rigours of the Premier League.

“We’ve seen lots of players come in and haven’t managed to do it – even Manchester United players – [Juan Sebastian] Veron, [Radamel] Falcao, [Angel] Di maria, [Memphis] Depay, [Diego] Forlan, [Bastian] Schweinsteiger, [Gerard] Pique

“You even look at Deco, [Andriy] Shevchenko and [Gonzalo] Higuain [at Chelsea] – they didn’t do it. [Alvaro] Morata, [Fernando] Morenties.

“They couldn’t adapt, but they’re not bad players, they just struggled to adapt to the Premier League.”

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