9 must-watch players at the World Cup

#2 Raphael Varane (France)

Varane is an excellent ball-playing center-back

Varane is now being seen as an all-round young defender for France. At just 21 years of age, he represented France in the 2014 World Cup. Four years later, he is expected to do the same with Didier Deschamps having great trust in him.

Physically strong and fast, Varane is suited to play as a center-back and partners well with Barcelona centre-back Samuel Umtiti.

Given that he is just 24 years, he is still relatively inexperienced to other center-backs like Sergio Ramos and Laurent Koscielny on the world stage. At a club level, he has made over 130 appearances for Real Madrid thus far and is one of the most reliable defenders in La Liga.

He is one of the players to be watched over the summer as his professional career comes to a peak.