The bad relationship between Thibaut CourtoisBelgian goalkeeper Real Madrid, and the Belgium coach, Domenico Tedesco, who went awry after a disagreement over the captain’s armband last year, has become even more complicated and raises fears that the footballer will not suit up as an international again.
Thibaut Courtois, arquero Bélgica ANP via Getty Images
The goalkeeper, who in June 2023 left a Red Devils camp apparently offended at not having received the captain’s stripes in the absence of Kevin de Bruyne, has reacted negatively to the coach’s latest statements about the relationship between the two.
????️ | “I’ve tried everything, absolutely everything” ????
???? Will things ever work out between national coach Domenico Tedesco and Thibaut Courtois ????❓#pickxsports #brd #belgianreddevils #rodeduivels #tedesco #domenicotedesco #courtois #thibautcourtois pic.twitter.com/3nbgWqsFKi
— Pickx Sports (@PickxSports) March 14, 2024
Three emojis in the social network have been enough to aggravate a controversy between the player and the coach. Specifically, three noses – like Pinocchio’s – that Courtois used to comment on a video of Tedesco saying at a press conference that he had “tried everything” to redirect the situation.
Previously, the goalkeeper had “liked” a publication by Atlético de Madrid midfielder Axel Witsel, 35, who was also critical of the 38-year-old Italian-German coach for not counting on him without giving him many explanations.
“Thibaut Courtois does it again and insinuates that Domenico Tedesco lied at a press conference,” headlines public radio and television RTBF in an article dedicated to the latest friction between the goalkeeper and the coach.
The goalkeeper, who is recovering from a long injury, will not be part of the Belgian team in the next Euro Cup.
The player himself announced this in an interview with the newspaper Sporza last December, when he assured that it was an exclusively sporting issue and took the opportunity to apologize for the controversy surrounding his abandonment of the camp.
“It was a bad decision to leave after the Austria game. I would like to apologize to the team and especially to the fans. I think these two groups are the most shocked. So, I apologize 100% and I’m sorry,” he said.
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However, in those statements, Courtois denied that he had strictly felt offended for not receiving the armband that Lukaku wore after the change of Kevin De Bruyne, because if so he would have left when Tedesco named Manchester’s “17” captain months before. City.
He assured that on the day in question it bothered him that neither the Federation nor the coach had any gesture towards him despite the fact that he had played one hundred international matches with the senior team.
“I thought it was time for the Federation and the coach to make a nice gesture towards a goalkeeper who has done a lot for the country (…). I think he deserved better during such a beautiful moment. Especially since there was no real hierarchy between Romelu and me,” he said.
He was also angry that Tedesco, who took charge of the Belgian team after the Spaniard Roberto Martínez, had not announced his decision sooner and reproaches him for not having tried to find a solution to the problem since then, he said.
The situation, far from being redirected, has worsened over time and the new incident raises fears that Courtois will not return to the national team for years because, in that same press conference that the Real Madrid player disfigured on social networks, the Federation announced which extended Tedesco’s contract until 2026.
Taking into account that the Belgian will turn 32 next May, there is even fear that Courtois will once again wear the Belgium national team shirt.
“This time it’s over: Thibaut Courtois openly attacks Tedesco on social networks and probably seals his future,” headlines the Belgian football media Walfoot.