Raphaël Varane warns against concussions and calls for awareness

The 2018 world champion spoke about his experience in L’Equipe, and revealed that he played several high-stakes matches despite suffering concussions.

Raphaël Varane fights a new duel, facing the consideration of concussions in the world of football. The Manchester United defender, who announced his international retirement after the 2022 World Cup, spoke at length in an interview given to the newspaper The Team, Tuesday April 2nd. Varane indicates that he has played several matches in his career despite concussions, and wants a change in mentality regarding the approach to these injuries, starting from the training of young footballers.

The Northerner explains that he only recently became closely interested in the subject, after years of ignorance. The doctors’ insights echoed experiences he had earlier in his career. “When you look at three of the worst matches of my career, there are at least two before which I had suffered a concussion a few days earlier: against Germany in the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup and with Real Madrid against Manchester City in the round of 16 of the 2020 Champions League”, he assures regarding two matches concluded with defeats for France and his former team Real.

On the subject of the 2014 World Cup, Varane admits to having finished the round of 16 against Nigeria “in autopilot mode‘” after receiving the ball on one temple.

“If someone had spoken to me at that time, I don’t even know if I would have been able to answer. I don’t remember the match after that shock.”

Raphaël Varane

at L’Equipe, April 2, 2024

Assuring that he had not been himself and had lost weight in the days following this shock, he had not been excluded from the quarter-final against Germany. During this match, the French defender was dominated in an aerial duel by Mats Hummels for the only goal of the game.

“In ten years, I have never wanted to talk about it because it can sound like an apology and I never wanted it to look like one, because it is not.he continues. As footballers used to playing at the highest level, we are used to pain, we are a bit like soldiers, tough guys, symbols of physical strength, but these are symptoms that are quite invisible. If your leg hurts and you limp, everyone sees it. But there, it immediately feels weak to say that you are tired, that you have migraines or eye fatigue. It often comes across as excuses or not being up for the challenge.“

“I know I damaged my body”

Raphaël Varane specifies that he felt a similar situation this season with Manchester United. This time he had chosen to carry out examinations after having been made aware of the issue for the first time in recent months by specialists working within the English club. He then took several days off and missed the next meeting. “Often, as a player, we don’t understand, we don’t even think about doing a test. So, recognizing a concussion and treating it well is a real challenge. It’s a real health issue, it can even be vital. […] When you know that the comRepeated motions have potentially a deadly effect, you tell yourself that it could go very wrong.“

He calls for a change in mentalities, particularly from the training of young players, while England has, for example, banned headings in competition before the age of 12. “At the time, I wasn’t a family man, but today, at 30 and with three children, I think differently. I don’t know if I’ll live to be 100, but I know I damaged my body. The dangers of heading must be instilled on all amateur and youth football fields.“

In recent months, several other internationals have suffered concussions, such as Lille’s Samuel Umtiti, who suffered discomfort at half-time of the match between Losc and Reims on September 26, after suffering a shock without being replaced in the stride. Several major football competitions have proposed a system similar to that used in rugby, namely temporary changes, while the concussion protocol is examined. The NFL, the American football championship, has for its part banned hip tackles from next season, while several scientific studies have highlighted numerous cases of brain degeneration in players who have suffered repeated shocks to the hip. the head.