It is no great coincidence that all four of Manchester United's victories so far this season have come when Raphael Varane has started.
The Frenchman, who joined United just over a year ago from Real Madrid, has started just four times in all competitions so far this season and they are the only matches that they have so far won. He was left on the bench for Thursday night's 1-0 defeat to Real Sociedad.
Admittedly, it's hard to blame the defeat to Sociedad solely on the absence of Varane, with a dubious penalty decision providing the platform for the Basque outfit to scoop all three points in their Europa League Group E opener, but United did not look as comfortable at the back without him. After starting their opening two Premier League matches on the bench, he was handed his first start of the season against Liverpool — a moment that marked the beginning of a remarkable change in fortunes.
