Raphael Varane is closing in on completing his expected move to Manchester United, having seen the Red Devils agree a deal in principle with Real Madrid for his transfer.
All that is standing in the way of an announcement is personal terms and a medical, both of which should be formalities as United land their second statement signing of the summer.
Varane will arrive as Harry Maguire’s partner at centre back, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer plots a Premier League title challenge in the upcoming season.
He will be moving to United in a £42million deal from Los Blancos, where he has spent the last decade, winning four Champions Leagues and three La Liga titles.
Joining the Frenchman in the Spanish capital has been his childhood sweetheart, Camille Tytgat, who is regularly seen cheering on the World Cup winner from the stands.
The duo reportedly grew up together and met at high school in Lille, with their romance starting around 2010.
By the time their relationship began, Varane was playing for Ligue 1 side Lens, 25 miles away from the city he grew up.
Unlike many high school romances, Varane and Tytgat have stayed together well into adulthood.
Five years after reportedly getting together, the pair married in 2015 at the town hall in the seaside town of Le Touquet on the coast of the English Channel.
Varane by this time had moved to Real Madrid, becoming a star of the team which had won the Spanish title and a Champions League trophy.
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But while many of his Madrid peers would be expected to hold lavish weddings, Varane’s was much more intimate.
Only family and close friends were invited to the ceremony, with the couple releasing just one images from the day.
That trend-bucking follows a pattern of Tytgat’s life, with the 28-year-old far from the typical partner of a superstar footballer.
In fact, before settling down into her life with Varane, she graduated with a degree in law, though it is not known if she is practicing.
The Frenchwoman prefers to keep her personal life private, mostly shunning social media and only giving glimpses of her lifestyle on trips abroad.
Tytgat is also the mother of Varane’s children, with the couple being parents to son Ruben, who is four years-old, and daughter Anais, who was only born last year.
With the family regularly spotted in the stands supporting the soon-to-be United defender, it is expected that they will also be seen sitting in the stands at Old Trafford.
While the move is yet to be officially confirmed, United fans will hope they will see their new star in their side's first Premier League match of the season against Leeds in two weeks' time.
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