Manchester United defender Raphael Varane fit for Tottenham clash

Central defender Varane is back in training after testing positive for Covid

Varane is back in training after testing positive for Covid

(Manchester United via Getty Images)

Raphael Varane has declared himself fit for Manchester United’s crunch clash with Tottenham Hotspur.

Ralf Rangnick’s side need a win against their top-four rivals on Saturday evening as the Red Devils looks to bounce back from last weekend’s chastening 4-1 loss at Manchester City.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani missed the Etihad Stadium encounter through injury, while Luke Shaw and Varane sat out the game after testing positive for Covid-19.

Central defender Varane is back in training ahead of the Spurs match and looking forward to the clash.

“Yeah, I’m OK,” Varane told club media on Thursday. “I’m training normally. I feel better and I’m ready to help the team and to look forward.

“It was a very good game (when we won 3-0 at Tottenham in October). I think we played very well and we respected the plan of the game. I think we were very, very solid and the result was a great result.”

That proved to be Nuno Espirito Santo’s final match as Spurs boss, with Antonio Conte swiftly brought in as his replacement.

Tottenham have had some ups and downs under the Italian but head to Old Trafford buoyed by a 5-0 shellacking of Everton on Monday, when star man Harry Kane struck twice.

“He’s in good form,” Varane said. “He’s a very good player. I like to be playing against the best players in the world and in the Premier League there is a lot of very good strikers.

“Every game is a challenge and we have to be ready for this. Against this kind of player you have to be ready and focused in every moment.

“We can’t leave a lot of space because they are very good. We have to be ready.”