{"id":298330,"date":"2023-11-22T05:09:08","date_gmt":"2023-11-22T05:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allmysportsnews.com\/?p=298330"},"modified":"2023-11-22T05:09:08","modified_gmt":"2023-11-22T05:09:08","slug":"man-utd-could-be-about-to-sell-another-scapegoat-in-january-as-well-as-sancho","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allmysportsnews.com\/soccer\/man-utd-could-be-about-to-sell-another-scapegoat-in-january-as-well-as-sancho\/","title":{"rendered":"Man Utd could be about to sell another ‘scapegoat’ in January as well as Sancho"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Manchester United may sell Raphael Varane after the centre-back was described as another of Erik ten Hag\u2019s \u2018scapegoats\u2019 by former striker Louis Saha. Varane has been linked with a \u00a317million transfer to Bayern Munich ahead of the January transfer window.<\/p>\n

The experienced French star has not started in the Premier League since a 1-0 defeat by Crystal Palace on September 30. Ten Hag admitted that Harry Maguire\u2019s form was keeping Varane out of the starting 11.<\/p>\n

However, Varane\u2019s issues at United appear to go deeper than simply being out of favour. Former Red Devils forward Saha believes Varane has become a scapegoat at Old Trafford, possibly following in the footsteps of Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo who were cast to one side after falling out with the Dutchman.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could be a breakdown in the relationship between player and manager. I know he\u2019s been injured often, but he needs to be given the chance to get back to his best after a spell out,” Saha told Betfred.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s true that everybody needs competition but you can\u2019t fiddle with the defence too much because that department provides you with a solid foundation. I don\u2019t understand why Raphael\u2019s been dropped, so maybe something\u2019s been said behind closed doors. It\u2019s as if he\u2019s being scapegoated in some way and I don\u2019t like it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would understand the decision to drop him if there was another defender playing outstandingly well, but that\u2019s not the case. Nobody\u2019s really stood out. I respect the decision of the manager because you need to make changes when your team isn\u2019t playing well.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, the defence is one area that you don\u2019t mess with because it can put stress on the goalkeeper, especially Andre Onana who\u2019s new to the Premier League. I don\u2019t understand what\u2019s happened with Raphael in the last couple of weeks to justify the reasoning for him being dropped.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sancho, whose continued refusal to apologise to Ten Hag over a scathing public statement, has been linked with an exit in January. Ronaldo had his contract terminated after he conducted a fiery interview with Piers Morgan a year ago.<\/p>\n