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Manchester United defender Raphael Varane opened up about his first interaction with Cristiano Ronaldo after moving from Lens to Real Madrid in 2011.
The French centre-back joined Los Blancos after Ronaldo had already spent a couple of years at the Santiago Bernabeu. When asked whether the Portuguese ace responded by saying 'I'm Rapha' after Ronaldo called him 'Varane', he told French channel Canal+ (via GOAL):
"Yes it’s true, I think that on the field there is no need to be shy. I am someone who is quite reserved outside but on the field you have to make your own place and be respected.”
Varana and Ronaldo shared the pitch 231 times for Real Madrid and Manchester United combined. Adding that the best are always aware of how to manage energy levels, the former said:
"That's the challenge for great teams, to succeed in winning while exerting less energy on the pitch. You can't put your full energy into everything when there are games every three days. You can't run a marathon every day."
"I had periods where we played Clasico, Champions League, Clasico - in a week you feel like you've lived an entire life!" he added,
Varane could be reuniting with Ronaldo at Al-Nassr after reports have linked the defender with a move away from Old Trafford this summer. The pair won four UEFA Champions League trophies and two La Liga titles, among other honors together.
Former Real Madrid star Eden Hazard says Cristiano Ronaldo will score goals till he's 50
Former Real Madrid and Chelsea attacker Eden Hazard lavished praise on Cristiano Ronaldo, calling the five-time Ballon d'Or winner the 'GOAT to score goals'. Even at 39, the former Manchester United man continues to score in abundance.
This season, he's found the net on 27 occasions in 28 appearances across competitions for Al-Nassr. Speaking on The Obi One Podcast, Hazard said about Ronaldo (via SI):
"Ronaldo is the GOAT to score goals, to bring trophies to the team. This guy is... wow. Look at him now, he's 39. He is going to score goals until 50, believe me, 50!"
Ronaldo has enjoyed an illustrious career that has seen him score 741 senior career goals, with 450 of those coming in Real Madrid colors. He's likely to feature when Al-Nassr travel to Al-Shabab for a Saudi Pro League fixture on Sunday (February 25).
