Raphael Varane back from injury ahead of Tottenham

Manchester United centre back and star 2021 Summer signing Raphael Varane has rejoined the first team squad ahead of Saturday’s match against Tottenham Hotspurs. The Frenchman was expected to miss a few weeks after suffering a groin injury in France’s UEFA Nations League Final victory over Spain earlier this month. His return comes at a welcome time for the club as they continue to leak goals since returning from the international break, and big matches against Tottenham, Atalanta, and Manchester City to play in the coming days.

Varane’s early return does not necessarily mean that he will start, or even feature in the match tomorrow afternoon, but it does provide a very welcome reinforcement potentially for United’s important UEFA Champions League group fixture against Atalanta next week. With 6 points from a possible 9, United are looking to get to the relative safety of the 10 point threshold as soon as possible, and a win on the road in Italy will go a long way to making that happen.

Varane’s wealth of experience and medals in European competition shows the value that he brings to the side in such matches, and his presence has certainly been missed. While the midfield is also very much at fault for the poor defensive performances, the team has conceded 11 goals in 3 matches since his injury. While United weren’t dominant in all of their matches to start the season, the defensive stability of the Varane-Maguire partnership was there from the start, and fans will hope that his return will bring some stability to the side as they look to recover from their atrocious run of form.