Cristiano Ronaldo has been sensational on his return to Manchester United and his penalty in the 3-0 win over Brentford was his 18th Premier League goal of the season.
He is just one goal behind Tottenham ’s Heung-Min Son and two adrift of Liverpool ’s Mohamed Salah in the race for the Golden Boot. Yet former Real Madrid team-mate Raphael Varane has suggested a different Iberian for United’s Player of the Season.
Varane has named David De Gea and the Spain goalkeeper has been one of the few consistently good performers for United during their difficult season. De Gea was also named by interim boss Ralf Rangnick as one of the handful of players United can rebuild their team around.
When asked if De Gea has been United’s best player this season, Varane replied: “I agree. David is having an amazing season. He helped us a lot. I think he has experience and he’s an amazing goalkeeper.”
De Gea will be one of the cornerstones for United under new boss Erik ten Hag and Varane is excited about working with the Dutchman after experiencing first hand his coaching prowess. Varane, 29, was part of the Real side humbled by Ten Hag’s Ajax three years ago when they won 4-1 at the Bernabéu to dump them out of the Champions League.
“I played against them in the Champions League and they played very well,” said the French centre-half, who scored United’s third goal against Brentford. “I’m very excited to work with him. I’m looking forward to work with him. I think he has good experience and he’s a good person to work in this club.”
Varane’s first season at Old Trafford following his £34million move from Real has been blighted by injuries and he has started just 19 of their 36 Premier League games. He has still enjoyed playing for United and is looking forward to making more of an impact in the next campaign with a full pre-season behind him.
“I think I need a full pre-season to be fit and I think next season will be better,” he said. “I think this season was not bad, but we can improve and we can do better.”
United are on course to record their lowest-ever points tally in the Premier League and Varane says every player can improve. “I think we can improve,” he said. “I think we have good players and we have to defend together closer. I think this season we were a little bit irregular and I think we can improve and to do better next season.
“We can be more in control during games. Sometimes we’re able to play very well 20-30 minutes and then play bad 10 or 15 minutes. We lost a lot of points like this. I think if we are consistent, we can improve a lot, so I think it’s a collective work we have to do. I’m always positive and I think with a good pre-season, with good work, we can prepare well the next season and be ready to fight for every trophy. That’s the ambition of this club.”
