Real Madrid No2 Aitor Karanka says Raphael Varane is in the team on merit.

Varane is competing at centre-half with Pepe.

"Naming a player as a substitute or a first-team player is our job and that's what they pay us for, regardless of debates or polls. Our mission is to choose the 11 that we think are in the best form. We try to get the best out of each player. The players are aware of that honesty and that we seek out each player's best moment. Getting on the first team is hard and getting off is easy," said Karanka.