Thierry Henry reveals his theory on why Real Madrid sold Raphael Varane and Casemiro to Manchester United at their peak after Spanish giants look to secure Kylian Mbappe
- The former Arsenal legend reveals why he thinks Real Madrid have sold their stars
- Raphael Varane and Casemiro joined Man United in the last three years
- Arsenal are making mugs of us, showing they don’t need a number 9 and Kai Havertz has become Mikel Arteta’s go-to guy – It all starts podcast
Thierry Henry has put forward his views on why Real Madrid were happy to sign Casemiro and Raphael Varane to Manchester United.
United looked to secure an important win when they signed centre-back Raphael Varane from Real Madrid for £34 million in 2021.
Casemiro followed suit with a move double that of Varane. In a £70 million swap to the English top flight, Casemiro joined Erik Ten Hag, although neither player has reached the expected heights since joining the club.
Varane’s spell at Old Trafford has been hampered by injuries, with expectations of his departure at the end of the current season when his contract expires.
Although Casemiro has made a bigger impact, he missed a significant part of the current Premier League season due to injury.
Thierry Henry thinks Real Madrid’s strategy has been to let older players leave so younger players can grow to fill the gap they left, which has worked well for the club
The pair enjoyed a successful time at Real Madrid, winning four La Liga titles, five Champions Leagues and four Spanish Super Cups together
Real Madrid’s decision to part ways with these players at the height of their abilities surprised many fans. Yet, according to former Arsenal striker Thierry Henry, there is a strategy behind it.
Speak with CBS SportsHenry revealed: ‘One thing you have to give them (Real Madrid) a lot of credit for is the ability they have to make sure they build a team, keeping some of the old guard with them to make sure to be able to explain it to the boys who come, the young boys who come’.
“If you look at it, if (Kylian) Mbappe goes there, they will have a team that can dominate Europe and dominate their league for maybe six to seven years because they will all be young.” he added.
‘The one thing they do so well is they know when to throw players away. I’m not talking about the players it makes sense to get rid of. I’m talking about it being time for (Cristiano) Ronaldo.
The pair have failed to live up to fans’ expectations since joining the club
‘It was time for Casemiro. It was time for (Mesut) Ozil. It was time for Varane, which I think was more of a knee problem, if I understand correctly.
“But if you think about those three – (Luka) Modric, (Toni) Kroos and Casemiro – they sold the youngest one. Why would you sell the youngest? ‘Well, they have noticed that those two Valverde, Tchouameni and (Eduardo) Camavinga can help and they are doing that very well and you have to give them credit because if you throw out the players that I mentioned before, they were excellent players from that moment for your team.’
