"He did okay" - Ralf Rangnick delivers honest verdict on Manchester United star's performance against Newcastle

Manchester United gaffer Ralf Rangnick came to Raphael Varane's defense after the Frenchman's lackluster performance against Newcastle United in the recently concluded Premier League match.

The former Real Madrid defender featured for the Red Devils for the first time since November 2. Varane has struggled with hamstring and thigh injuries since his arrival at Manchester United in a £42million deal in August.

As a result, the Frenchman has only started nine games so far and was culpable for Allan Saint-Maximin's opening goal.

However, Rangnick came to the seasoned defender's rescue and was confident that Varane would bounce back in their upcoming fixtures. Here's what he said:

"Raphael has not played for the last five or six weeks. Even before the Tottenham game, he was injured, so in the last three months, he hasn’t played that many games. Yes, he made a mistake before the first goal we conceded but apart from that I think he was okay. I wouldn’t say he was outstanding, the same with Harry, but he did okay."

The German gaffer further added:

"Our problem was that we allowed too many transitional moments. This is not only a problem of the centre-backs, it is a problem of the whole team. It starts up front, the role of the number 10s in that kind of formation. I don’t think it makes sense today to speak about the individual performance of players. We need to get better as a team."

Raphael Varane is likely to start for Manchester United in their final game of the year against Burnley on December 30.

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Edinson Cavani's late equalizer helped Manchester United eke out a draw against Newcastle United

Newcastle United v Manchester United - Premier League

The Uruguayan forward has found playing time hard to come by this season

Cavani has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford. Barcelona are currently the frontrunners to sign the former PSG forward.

The veteran striker has been warming the bench for a while now. Despite being one of Manchester United's best players last season, Cavani has struggled to find his name in the starting XI.

Mason Greenwood, Cristiano Ronaldo and more recently Jadon Sancho have all started ahead of Cavani recently.

This has left Anthony Martial and Edinson Cavani without a place in the XI. As a result, they've been linked with a move away from Old Trafford.

The Red Devils take on Burnley on December 30 and will be hoping to return to winning ways in their last game of 2021.