Raphael Varane reveals his admiration for Mourinho

Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane has revealed his special relationship with manager Jose Mourinho ahead of a potential move to Manchester United this summer.

The France international linked up with the European champions from Lens in the summer of 2011 - at a time when Jose Mourinho had been the head coach at the Bernabeu.

Varane followed to earn valuable playing time during the course of Mourinho's reign at Los Blancos and this merged a special bond between the two.

Speaking to L'Equipe, the centre-back admitted that he had thoughts over a Bernabeu exit following Mourinho's departure, but decided to stay on to fight for his position.

"I had a special relationship with Mourinho. With [Carlo] Ancelotti, I played less, but he did extraordinary things at Real and this is what counts," he told L'Equipe. "I mostly wondered if the club was in line with my plan, which was namely to play."

Varane has mostly partnered Sergio Ramos in central defence this season with Pepe being sorted with the backup duties.