In the summer window, Jonathan Varane arrived at Queens Park Rangers from Sporting Gijón and signed a contract until 2028.
The midfielder has been a regular for QPR, making 15 appearances in all competitions.
So Foot have had a detailed chat with the Frenchman to discuss various topics, including his decision to join QPR.
The 23-year-old is a product of RC Lens’ academy but didn’t manage to cement a place in their first team. He left the Ligue 1 side for Sporting Gijón in 2022. His displays for the second division Spanish club caught the attention of QPR and Atlético Madrid.
Varane has revealed Martí Cifuentes’ side made an attempt to sign him in the winter 2024 market. Sporting Gijón weren’t interested in sanctioning a move in January, but they opened the exit door in the last window.
When asked how his move to the Championship side took place, he said: “I had this desire to see something other than Spain.
“QPR were very interested and had even been since the previous winter. Gijón was not open at that time to let me go… England attracted me, there is a very nice project here and it happened like that.”
Diego Simeone’s side had looked at the player in the summer 2023 window but didn’t take the necessary steps to secure his services.
“I confirm. There were contacts [with Atlético] during the summer of 2023. When you hear that, you are proud,” Varane explained.
“I remained lucid, there was nothing concrete, but it encourages you to work when you catch the eye of a club like that…”
There’s still plenty of time for Varane to move upwards in the game but to have a good chance of doing that he needs to impress for QPR, and help them out of the mess they currently find themselves in.
