UNITED Young defender plots route back under Mourinho
A YEAR is a long time in football.
Last March, Guillermo Varela was one of the few positives Louis van Gaal could take from another disappointing afternoon as United were held to a 1-1 draw by West Ham.
Making his sixth start in 20 days, the Uruguayan was the best defender on the pitch and denied an in-form Dimitri Payet a clear one-on-one at the death.
In the 87th minute, Old Trafford rose to applaud another academy product who had made the step up as van Gaal threw on Matteo Darmian in his place.
It was a gesture the 23-year-old never forgot. “I will always be thankful to him and the club for what I experienced,” he told M.E.N. Sport.
“It’s a big club and it’s definitely not normal to give that chance to a young player, but that showed his confidence.
“For me, it was a great experience to play in the Premier League and the Champions League.”
Varela quickly established a close bond with the club’s Spanish speakers, including Sergio Romero and David De Gea, and picked up Marcos Rojo every day for the drive to Carrington.
But making his mark on loan at Eintracht Frankfurt has been a lot more difficult and, cruelly, it is through no fault of his own. Varela suffered torn ankle ligaments in just his third appearance for the club in August after a collision with Darmstadt striker Sven Schipplock.
And the road to recovery has been fraught with dangers.
After undergoing surgery, and having a screw removed in his ankle, Varela made his long-awaited return five months later. But it still did not feel right.
Having played through the pain barrier against Hertha Berlin and Bielefeld last month, enough was enough and Varela has had further surgery.
As a result, he will miss Saturday’s trip to the Allianz Arena to take on champions Bayern Munich as Frankfurt look to move into fifth place in the Bundesliga.
But, having previously spent time on loan at Real Madrid Castilla under one Zinedine Zidane, it is clear Varela does not regret his decision to go out on loan again.
“I talked to Jose Mourinho and we talked about my future and what would be best for me,” he said.
“He was very sincere towards me. He told me my playing time would be little so my decision was that I preferred to go.”
Varela featured in Mourinho’s first friendly as United boss against Wigan in June before negotiations started with Frankfurt.
“The relationship was very good and I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe I expected his character when he is confronted with the press – but that was definitely not the case.
“The most important thing for me is to get back 100 per cent to play until the end of the season. Then we will sit down together to see what’s best for the club and myself – then a decision will be made.”