Newcastle United used to shop exclusively in France; in fact, they once celebrated a French Day at St. James’ Park.
Many of Newcastle’s best players under Alan Pardew’s management were French. Under his direction, players like Yohan Cabaye and Moussa Sissoko, who were brought in for cheap prices, were crucial.
Graham Carr, the club’s chief scout at the time, helped Newcastle sign some incredible players for relatively low fees, before Mike Ashley inevitably sold them on for a huge profit. However, there were some players who the Magpies actually missed out on signing, despite Carr’s recommendation, one of whom was Raphael Varane.
Graham Carr advised Newcastle to sign Raphael Varane.
Carr addressed some of the players he thought Newcastle should recruit in an interview with iNews, but the club was unable to bring them to St James’ Park.
It included Varane. Carr reportedly told club official Derek Llambias that Newcastle only needed to sign this young center back from Lens, even though the article claims he was only 17 at the time.
Naturally, Varane was not signed by Newcastle. Instead, he would turn 18 and sign with Real Madrid in June 2011.
Varane demonstrated in Spain why Carr was so anxious to get him to St. James’ Park. He played for Santiago Bernabeu for ten years, winning three league championships, four Champions Leagues, four World Club Cups, and more during that time.
