Manchester United defender Raphael Varane has insisted that his side have what it takes to win the Champions League.
Varane is of course a four-time winner of the competition – a feat he managed during his time in Spain with Real Madrid.
The Frenchman accompanied Erik ten Hag to the pre-match press conference ahead of United’s first home game of the Champions League campaign against Galatasaray.
When asked by reporters how far United are from lifting club football’s most prestigious trophy, he responded, “I think this competition is about details, and you have to be efficient to win it. At the moment, in the last [few] weeks, I think what we can improve is to be more efficient in front of the goals. With a very low number of occasions, we concede goals and we need to create a lot to score.”
“That’s the reality of the top level. You have to be efficient to win big trophies.”
When asked if United have a chance of winning the Champions League, he replied, “Yes, I think so. I think we have the quality in the squad to win the competition. As I said, the competition is difficult. You have to take care about every detail.”
“But yeah, we have a team with quality, with good mentality. We have to make some improvements, it’s not the start of the season we expected, but I still believe we have enough quality to compete with the best teams in the world. Tomorrow is a great opportunity to get the first points in that competition and to move forward and to improve.”
The 30-year-old also took time to address the progress being made by United’s current crop of youngsters.
He hailed them for their impact and positive contributions, especially in injecting energy into the team.
Varane added that the youngsters are still learning and it’s up to the more senior players to lend them a helping hand and lead by example and communicate as best as possible.
“We have a lot to do. As a leader, we have to show them and to talk with them. So that’s what we try to do. And hopefully, they [the younger players] can bring their talent and passion on the pitch.”
“That will be very helpful this season. There are a lot of young talents at the club and, hopefully, they can improve the squad.”