Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois spoke to Rio Ferdinand recently, where he was asked about all sorts of things around the club and the player. They talked about Toni Kroos and the gap he has left in Real Madrid, to which Courtois said: “Toni Kroos always knew what to do. Left foot, right foot, he already knew before he received the ball where he’ll pass it. I think we really miss him this year.”
Courtois on Vinicius Jr
“I knew Vini Jr was going to be good before, but I didn’t think he’d be that great. The only guy who told me, ‘You’ll see in a few years’ was Eden Hazard. He told me straight away when he saw him. He felt that he had something special.”
Courtois on racial abuse
“I love a nice atmosphere in the stadium, I love a little bit of rivalry, but if you see what we have to hear on the pitch, it’s unbelievable… it goes a bit too far. There has to be zero tolerance for racism. I think we could’ve had a stronger reaction on the pitch like in the stuff that happened vs Valencia. Like walking off.”
Courtois on the treatment that Vinicius Jr receives
“If you come to an away game we play in Spain… from the first moment they whistle at Vini, they shout, they try to kick him out of the game, to make him mad, but I think he learned to deal with it.”
Courtois on Eden Hazard
“I feel a bit sad for Eden that his dream transfer to Madrid didn’t end like he would have liked too. He was a very special player.”
Courtois on Zidane
I was shy at first… it’s Zidane. I remember when he came back I switched a lot with Keylor. In pre-season we had a talk, he said ‘I don’t feel like you’re with me,’ I said I feel the same because, ‘players say I won’t play, he has Keylor.’ But he said ‘no, I like you, you’re my goalkeeper.’ After that I felt confident.
“I remember Zidane would join in the rondo’s… he would hardly be in the middle.”
