Thibaut Courtois is forcing a move to Real Madrid with the Chelsea goalkeeper’s agent in constant contact with Los Blancos, as per reports.
Spanish journalist Eduardo Inda has told OK Diario that Thibaut Courtois is pushing for a transfer to Real Madrid, with his agent regularly in touch with the Spanish giants to secure a move to the Santiago Bernabeu in the summer.
Thibaut Courtois is back to his very best after an underwhelming season with Chelsea that saw the then-champions surrender their Premier League title in dismal fashion. As the Blues finished tenth in a disastrous campaign, poor form and injury troubles resulted in Courtois struggling in goal.
However, the Belgium international has well and truly turned things around in style, with his superb performances between the sticks laying the foundation for a solid defensive output from the Premier League leaders.
Statistics back him up well too, with Courtois keeping the most clean sheets – 13 ahead of David De Gea, who has 9. And he’s second in the list of the least number of goals conceded this season (17), with only Huge Lloris (15) ahead of him in that particular chart.
Suffice to say, Courtois has been integral to Chelsea’s run up to the top of the table, with the Blues rated as the odds-on favourites to lift the Premier League trophy in May. And, over the weekend, his importance was on display once more as Courtois made two world class saves that were ultimately a key factor in Chelsea beating Arsenal 3-1.
However, despite what is looking like a successful campaign for Courtois and Chelsea, the 24-year-old Belgian wants a return to Spain, as per Inda. Courtois has already indicated that his heart’s desire is to go back to Spain, after three impressive seasons with Atletico Madrid, where he established himself as one of the most promising young goalkeepers.
Inda stated that Courtois’ agent is in constant contact with Real Madrid, but that the Belgian is not the first choice for Los Blancos, claiming, “Courtois is the second choice for the position. His agent calls Real Madrid every day to offer them his services.”
In Courtois’ stead, Manchester United goalkeeper is on top of the list of priority summer transfers for Real Madrid, and recent reports have stated that the La Liga leaders are ready with a €65 million bid for the Spain number 1 that they believe will trigger his release clause.
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho, understandably, is unwilling to part with De Gea’s company in the summer and will do everything in his power to keep his first choice goalkeeper at Old Trafford in the summer.
A goalkeeping reinforcement is top on the list of priorities for the summer transfer window for Real Madrid, with both Keylor Navas and Kiko Casilla failing to make an impression on Zinedine Zidane, with poor command over goal and lackadaisical distribution leaving a lot to be desired.
Should Real Madrid fail to persuade De Gea to move, they will move for Courtois, and with the Belgian interested in the move as well, we could well see the current Chelsea number one take the field in Los Blancos’ colours next season.
