It hasn't been the best of seasons for Manchester United this year, to put it lightly.
Erik ten Hag has been unable to build upon his impressive first season at Old Trafford. His side are sitting in sixth place, 13 points from the Champions League spots, and fighting tooth and nail for a place in the Europa League with four games remaining.
United's issues aren't limited to one area of the pitch either. Their goal difference of plus one highlights their weaknesses in attack and defence, meaning that this summer is likely going to be one filled with transfer activity as Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Co try to build a squad capable of challenging the likes of Manchester City and Arsenal in the future, and it looks like he has already identified a potential long-term upgrade for Raphael Varane.
Manchester United transfer news
According to a recent report from the Times, Crystal Palace 'fear' that star centre-back Marc Guéhi could be set to leave the club in the summer, with Manchester United one of the clubs most interested in his services should that happen.
The report has revealed that, alongside Arsenal, the Red Devils have already sent scouts to watch the former Chelsea ace and are primed to strike with just two and a bit years remaining on his £50k-per-week deal.
The report has also revealed that should the 23-year-old United target leave Selhurst Park in the summer, it'll cost interested parties around £55m, and while that would certainly represent a sizable investment from Ratcliffe and Co, it could be somewhat offset by the potential departure of one of the highest earners at Old Trafford, Varane.
According to a report from ESPN last week, the three-time European Champions could allow the former Real Madrid ace to leave the club for nothing to free up his £340k-per-week wages to invest in fresh signings such as Guehi.
That said, how does the young Englishman stack up to the French superstar?
How Guéhi compares to Varane
Now, on the surface, it might seem entirely unfair to Guehi to compare him to one of the most decorated defenders playing today, a centre-back who has won the World Cup, four Champions Leagues, three La Liga titles, one Spanish Cup, one League Cup and plenty of other individual awards, but when it comes down to their pure underlying numbers, it's closer than you might imagine.
For example, according to FBref, while the former Lens-gem has his young rival beat in certain metrics such as progressive passes, progressive carries, passing accuracy, shot-creating actions and aerial duels won, he comes out second best in several other relevant statistics.
Progressive Passes
3.87
2.74
Progressive Carries
1.07
0.61
Progressive Passes Received
0.13
0.28
Passing Accuracy
88.7%
86.6%
Completed Passes
45.7
50.6
Live Passes
46.6
55.9
Shot-Creating Actions
1.00
0.85
Goal-Creating Actions
0.07
0.09
Tackles
1.20
1.23
Tackles Won
0.73
0.80
Miscontrols
0.40
0.38
Dispossessed
0.13
0.09
Ball Recoveries
4.40
5.28
Aerial Duels Won
1.40
1.37
These include ball recoveries, tackles won, goal-creating actions, live passes, completed passes and, perhaps most crucial for how the modern game is played, the number of times he is dispossessed and the number of times he miscontrols the ball.
Furthermore, with The Athletic revealing that centre-backs do not hit their peaks until the age of 27, the young Palace "tank", as described by former England U21 teammate Josef Bursik, has plenty of time to reach Varane's progressive passing and carrying levels in the right setup.
Ultimately, while it would be foolish to expect Guéhi to come into the United side next season and have the impact that a fully fit Varane could in his pomp, there is no reason why he couldn't reach that level in time.
Moreover, with United unlikely to seriously challenge for the top honours in the immediate future, the "complete" centre-back, as talent scout Jacek Kulig described him, could be the perfect long-term upgrade for the Frenchman.
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