Real Madrid: 3 takeaways from Raphael Varane’s Euro 2020 campaign

Two of Real Madrid’s experienced campaigners Raphael Varane and Karim Benzema were parts of the French National squad for the ongoing European Championship. France faced a surprise exit in hands of the underdogs, Switzerland.

However, it would be safe to say that both Varane and Benzema fared decently in a French squad that largely underperformed. To break down Varane’s tournament for your convenience, here are the three biggest takeaways from his Euro 2020 campaign.

1. Raphael Varane is still a solid transfer commodity

Raphael Varane tested positive for COVID-19 towards the end of the past season which marked a distinct break from football for the Frenchman. Since May 1, 2021, Varane only appeared in one single match for Los Blancos, their final fixture in the league against Villarreal at home.

He then straightaway jumped to the European Championship with France to begin his first regular footballing since recovering from COVID. And, the Frenchman stepped up in the finest of styles. His performance against Germany in their Euro opener was particularly a standout in his complete tournament.

He has a fabulous 20 completed long balls under his belt in the tournament and has registered a key pass in the match against the defending champions, Portugal, who were eliminated in the Round of 16 as well. Varane has maintained a whopping 94.2% passing accuracy throughout his campaign, per WhoScored and, that makes for an impressive record for someone making a resumption.

Overall, with the speculations looming over his future, his Euro campaign was a reminder of the fact that he still is a solid center-back who remains a pioneer in reading the game and leading the backline of any given squad. He would still be one to keep an eye on for the summer’s transfer window. However, the story would be different if his contract situation is taken care of by Real Madrid.