BREAKING UPDATE: Manchester United defender confirms shock international retirement

MANCHESTER UNITED defender Raphaël Varane confirmed his shock international retirement on Thursday, February 2 following speculation hours ago.

UPDATE 2.22 pm (February 2) – The Manchester United defender Raphaël Varane took to social media to confirm his international retirement at the age of 29.

“Representing our beautiful country for a decade has been one of the greatest honours of my life,” the lengthy post started.

“Every time I wore that special blue jersey, I felt immense pride.

“The duty to give everything, to play with my heart and to win every time we took the field. I’ve been thinking about it for a few months now and I’ve decided that it’s the right time for me to retire from international football.”

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A post shared by Raphael Varane (@raphaelvarane)

He added: “As a child, I remember following France 98, this team, these players who made us live with indescribable emotions. I dreamed of doing what our heroes did and, 20 years later, I had one of the most beautiful experiences of my life, one that made me really proud.

“We brought the Cup home! I will never forget it. I still feel every single emotion I felt on that day, July 15, 2018. It was one of the greatest and most memorable moments of my life.

“This victory that we all won together would never have been possible without the support of Didier Deschamps, of each member of the coaching staff and our staff during these years, of my teammates who defended our jersey in each of our matches.

“But most importantly, this victory would not have been possible without the support of each and every one of you along the way.

“Your fervour, the celebrations and the memories of our return to France will stay with me forever.

“Even after the defeat in the final last year, albeit with a great run, you welcomed us back as heroes. To each and every one of you, a thousand thanks!”

“I will miss those moments with you for sure, but the time has come for the new generation to take over. We have a group of talented young players who are ready to take over, who deserve their chance and who need you,” he continued.

“From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Rapha.”

Merci pour tout 💙🤍♥️ pic.twitter.com/FUk4zZWFpt

— Raphaël Varane (@raphaelvarane) February 2, 2023

People commented on the defender’s shock announcement.

“Thanks to you, Raphaël 💙🤍❤️”

Thanks to you, Raphaël 💙🤍❤️

— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) February 2, 2023

“Legend.”

Legend

— Emmett J. Scanlan (@EmmettScanlan) February 2, 2023

“Best CB in Europe.”

Best CB in Europe

— Mark Goldbridge (@markgoldbridge) February 2, 2023

ORIGINAL 12.30 pm (February 2) – A current Manchester United defender is reportedly set to announce his shock international retirement on Thursday, February 2.

Manchester United defender Raphaël Varane is to announce his international retirement at the age of 29, according to reports from France.

The French international, who was part of France’s World Cup win in 2018, is reportedly considering retirement from the international setup, according to Le Parisien.

The 29-year-old, who joined the Premier League club from Spanish giants Real Madrid, is reportedly keen on spending more time with his family after failing to lift the World Cup in Qatar.

France narrowly lost out to Argentina on penalties after a pulsating final in Qatar back in December 2022.

However, Varane has suffered multiple injuries in recent years and has frustrated fans of the Old Trafford club with his time spend on the treatment table.

Interestingly, when fit, the Frenchman has been able to strike up a great centre-back partnership with Argentinian Lisandro Martínez for ten Hag’s team.

The news of the Manchester United defender’s possible retirement comes after Hugo Lloris and Steve Mandanda, two other 2018 world champions, recently retired from the French side.

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