Over the past few weeks, there have been numerous reports that talk about French centre-back Raphael Varane not signing a contract extension when it’s time. I couldn’t help but wonder, that if he does leave, who replaces him? Who in the world is good enough to replace the great Raphael Varane? I mean, we’re talking about a world-cup winning centre-back here. They’re not that easy to come by. So, who are the three players that Real Madrid could buy, in case Varane is to leave?
Jules Kounde – Sevilla
Jules Kounde from Sevilla is probably the most realistic, possible and best choice for Real Madrid. The man is a really, really good defender. His passing is great, his positioning is amazing and his decision-making is almost always spot on. He is great on the ball which makes him an undoubted starter in games where teams press the hell out of Real Madrid, like Manchester City, Ajax, Liverpool, and even Spanish teams like Eibar.
Kounde is obviously insanely talented, and he has been one of the best defenders in the league for quite some time, forming a brilliant centre-back partnership with Diego Carlos. But the thing that probably is most important out of everything I’ve mentioned is that he has experience of actually playing in the league. That is very important, and now that he has the experience under his belt, the only way is up.
Jules Kounde is press-resistant, has so much potential, is a leader at the back, quick on the ball, quick off the ball, good decision making, great distribution. What more do you want? He’s only 22 years old. It’s scary how high his potential can go. There are a number of European clubs that would want to have a player like him in their team, and honestly speaking, I can’t blame them.
Hopefully, the potential offer (if that is to happen) is good enough to lure him to the capital of Spain, because if he goes to another top club, Real Madrid will lose out on a gem. There aren’t many of those like the Frenchman. We can talk all day about the Van Dijks and the Varanes and the Ramoses, but this guy? He’s next. He’ll be a future starter for France. Like I said, age and talent are on his side, and he deserves the recognition he is getting right now.
Milan Skriniar – Inter
Skriniar is another great option for Real Madrid to go for, in case Varane is to leave. He has all the traits, talent, and ability to become one of the best centre-backs of this generation. He’s gifted with great height, great pace, and excellent reading of the game. His passing is also pretty good for a centre-back, with a career average of 92.1% and a season average of 91.9%. He is only 26 years old, so he hasn’t even entered his prime yet. And if Real Madrid do go for him in the future, it won’t be a surprise; Real Madrid have always been interested in signing the Slovakian centre-back, and his agent confirmed it last year. If Varane is to leave, now is the time to buy the guy.
The language would be a barrier, of course, but that’s going to be there for any player that joins a team from a different league, wouldn’t it? It’s not unheard of, but it does take time to settle in. Also, Skriniar has no experience of playing in Spain, which is a lot different from playing in Italy. Good thing is, as I said, that he has age on his side. Only 26 years of age means he has many years still left to play at the top level. His talent is undoubtedly there, his decision-making is tip-top. He would be very expensive, considering he has already proven himself in one of Europe’s top five leagues. But, at this point, there aren’t many good players that come for cheap, you know? Every young player that has had two good seasons already has his price tag multiplied by two.
Skriniar has been doing it for so long, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see him go for more than 80 million euros. Although, he would be hard to get. I can imagine there would be so many clubs that would want to have him, so if Real Madrid want him, they’d need to act fast when the time comes.
Pau Torres – Villarreal
Pau Torres is a very talented Spanish centre-back that currently plays for Villarreal. This player might be the least renowned on the list if we’re talking about how many people know about him and his talent. But, let me tell you one thing: he is really, really good.
He’s the youngest after Kounde on this list, and also the tallest on this list. He’s definitely not the quickest centre-back in the world, and is stylistically a bit different to Raphael Varane, but, that doesn’t matter that much. He’s great on the ball, amazing in the air, he passes the ball well and is very attentive. He’s been one of La Liga’s best young centre-backs this season. His defensive IQ is way ahead of his age.
I covered Villarreal for the first half of the season because I was tracking Takefusa Kubo’s development over at Villarreal USA, and one of the players I was most impressed by was Pau Torres. He makes up for his slight lack of pace by being aggressive from the get-go. He’s always got his eyes on the ball and is always to go into challenges. That’s what I like about him the most. He partners Sergio Ramos for Spain, and they both work really well together, I won’t lie. Interestingly enough, there have been rumours since January that Real Madrid want to replace Sergio Ramos with Pau Torres. That doesn’t mean that he can’t replace the other centre-back, though.
By the way, we’re forgetting that Real already have a great young centre-back in Eder Militao, who, although didn’t have the greatest of seasons due to lack of playing time, is still every bit as talented and would work well with Pau Torres, or pretty much any centre-back on this list, if anyone is to join. Honestly speaking, Pau Torres is one guy who has the potential to replace any one of the two starting centre-backs that Real Madrid have.
It’s sad that we’re hearing rumours about both of them not signing contract extensions, but if that is to happen, these three players are very well suited to eventually replace them at the heart of Real Madrid’s defense.