Real Madrid face Valencia on Wednesday hoping to gain an advantage over rivals Atletico Madrid in the race for second place in La Liga. Ahead of this crunch encounter, Madrid manager Zidane spoke about a number of topics, including the possible departure of Raphael Varane.
"I can't imagine Madrid without him. We don't want him to leave. He is young. He has been here for eight years. There are things that happen outside the club, but these are normal things in life. At the moment he is at the best club in the world, he knows it and has won lots of things", he said.
He then continued, saying: "Evidently I want Varane to stay. There is no need to talk about that. It's important to respect the players that are here and that have done lots of things here. To speak of cleansing the squad is a lack of respect. Changes will have to be made, but now is not the time".
Varane has been linked with a host of top European clubs, including Manchester United and PSG. But it appears that Juventus are currently leading the race to sign the defender, as reported by the Italian press.