5 teenagers who succeeded at Real Madrid

5) Raphael Varane

At a young age, Raphael Varane replaced veteran centre-backs at Real Madrid

As Florentino Perez considered signing Raphael Varane for £9m in 2011, it was Zinedine Zidane who convinced him, saying he would be the “finest French centre-back since Laurent Blanc”. At the time, many believed he would take some time to come good but his rapid rise to the top has surprised even Zidane.

At the age of 18, he was pretty much the fifth-choice centre-back behind Ramos, Pepe, Raul Albiol and Ricardo Carvalho. But an impressive Clasico debut in the Copa del Rey where he made a goal-line clearance and even scored the equaliser saw him receive more games. He also managed to score in the return leg where Real won 3-1.

Injuries plagued his early career at the Bernabeu but it did not stop him from replacing the more experienced Pepe in the starting lineup that won La Decima in 2014. By the time he was 20, he had even been named in the ‘Best Foreign XI in Real Madrid’s history’ by a popular Spanish publication.

Now 24, Varane has already won three Champions League titles, playing in two finals. In a fledgeling career where he is yet to play 200 games, the French defender has already won 11 trophies with the club.