Thibaut Courtois has acknowledged that players who have been relegated in Belgium’s national team may be more inclined to give up. Back in October, reports surfaced that the former Chelsea goalkeeper had expressed in the Belgian dressing room his hesitance to play alongside stars who had recently been relegated from their respective leagues during a Euro 2024 qualifier against Austria.
This statement was believed to be directed at Timothy Castagne, Youri Tielemans, and Dennis Praet, all of whom were relegated with Leicester last season. Nevertheless, Courtois, the Red Devils goalkeeper, is now refuting that he ever made these comments.
However, he did disclose that he knows who may have leaked to the press that he made those comments, and he explained his true thoughts on having relegated players on the team. When asked about these allegations in an interview with Sporza about Belgium, he stated that he never said that players were inadequate.
Courtois went on to explain that having relegated players in the squad can make it difficult to reverse a losing situation, as they may be more likely to give up. This he emphasized was not a disparagement of Leicester or the players, but rather a recognition of the challenges that can arise in football.
In the interview, Courtois also discussed various other topics, including his decision not to participate in Euro 2024 so he can focus on recovering from his ACL injury, and his accusation that Belgium’s manager had threatened to leak their conversations to the press.
