Raphael Varane is widely viewed as one of the best young defenders in all of soccer. And despite playing on Real Madrid, the 21-year-old might be playing at Stamford Bridge if Chelsea has its way.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho is reportedly interested in making a bid for the youngster, who has struggled to find a steady position in Carlo Ancelotti's starting XI.

But is he someone Real Madrid should let go of?

Sergio Ramos is the de facto starter in the center of the pitch and is the team's likely captain when Iker Casillas departs this summer. That leaves the second spot a competition between Varane and Pepe. While Pepe is on the wrong side of 30, he is still a solid defender with a few years left at a high level.

Pepe, of course, has far more tackles per game than Varane (1.7-0.9 per game), more interceptions (2.2-1.7 per game) and offers more on the offensive side of the game.

But Varane does offer some things that Pepe does not. Varane averages far more clearances per game than his Portuguese teammate (5.1-4.2 per game); in fact, he leads the team in that statistic. He also gets dribbled past less often than Pepe and averages more blocks than the older colleague. Throw in his age and the likelihood that for now he is less injury prone and this is a no-brainer for Real Madrid. Do not let him go.

For Chelsea, Varane offers an upgrade over his two go-to guys in the middle of the part. Both Gary Cahill and John Terry average more tackles, clearances and blocks per game than Varane, but they offer less interceptions and even get dribbled past more often than the youngster. Throw in the fact that Terry is 34 and Cahill is 29 and you have every reason to believe that Varane will eventually be an upgrade over Chelsea's current duo.

That said, the Frenchman is not the most physical of players and that could hurt him in the Premier League. He might have to learn that under Mourinho, but that might not be too hard considering the fact that the Portuguese manager was the first one to give Varane a chance on Madrid's first side. He performed admirably for the squad in a few matches against Barcelona and even proved the bright spot in the first leg of the Copa del Rey when he not only helped avoid a clear scoring chance, but also scored a defining goal in the tilt.

He was a clear main man for Jose Mourinho, but has struggled to keep his spot under Ancelotti with Pepe and Ramos getting more favorable starts.

Should Real Madrid let Varane run off to the Premier League and let the Pepe-Ramos duo carry the weight? Or should they think about the future and keep him, especially considering the fact that there are no other prospects quite like Varane waiting in the pipeline?