According to Diario Gol, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has swayed the club hierarchy to sign Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane this summer.

The Red Devils have a lot of defenders in the first-team squad – Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Daley Blind, Victor Lindelof, Eric Bailly and Marcos Rojo – but only Smalling and Jones’ form has been criticised, while Blind and Rojo have seen little playing time this season.

As a result, United could benefit from a stellar centre-back who can improve the backline and Mourinho believes Varane is the man. Diario Gol state the Portuguese boss ‘has convinced’ United to make a bid for the Real Madrid star who was the ‘stranger’ he originally signed during his time in charge of Los Blancos.

Varane wouldn’t be cheap, however, with a release clause of around £178m, nearly twice what United paid for Paul Pogba in 2016 – a club-record signing. There is one potential obstacle in the Red Devils completing a deal, however, as the 24-year-old has shown no desire to leave Real.

He joined the Spanish club from RC Lens in 2011 and has gone on to make more than 200 appearances in all competitions. The French international seems happy at the Santiago Bernabéu and may not be open to a move to Old Trafford as a result.