Courtois: "I don't think Salah thinks we are easier than City"

MADRID, 24 May. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois believes that the statements by Mohamed Salah, Liverpool striker, saying that he preferred the Madrid team to see Manchester City in the Champions League final are "disparaging", and confessed that he hopes "to be able to celebrate more" to win the Champions League because he knows "what it's like to lose it", since he did it in 2014 with Atlético de Madrid.

"I don't think he meant it as a disparagement, I think Salah respects football and the teams a lot. I've been with him in the dressing room at Chelsea and he's a good boy, I think he has more desire for the final of 2018, in which he was injured and they ended up losing, and I think he said it because of that desire, I don't think he said it because he thinks we are easier than City, but that's my opinion, he will have to say it after the game" , Courtois explained during the 'Media Day' prior to the Champions League final that will face Real Madrid with Liverpool next Saturday.

Courtois believes that "the only thing" Liverpool can regret is the draw against Tottenham for which "they failed to win the Premier." "They have had a great year in all competitions, they have reached the final of the League Cup, the FA Cup, in the Premier until the last game and now the Champions League final so I think they will be fine," he said. .

The Belgian goalkeeper believes that Juergen Klopp's men will arrive "physically a little more injured because they played with great effort until the last game", unlike Real Madrid, who in recent weeks have "been able to rest and work to arrive physically perfect at Saturday". "A final is a final and they will arrive super motivated to win it like us," he said.

About the rival, Courtois pointed out that "their best weapons are that they are very strong offensively, they have fast forwards, they always try to play into the spaces behind the defense and with the high line". "We have to be aware of those balls and defend well, but we have trained for it, to stop those passes and I think that if we can block them offensively we can also hurt them defensively and win the game," he explained.

Thibaut Courtois already knows what it's like to play in a Champions League final, he did it in 2014, when defending the Atlético de Madrid goal he fell at the hands of Real Madrid. "Obviously losing a final always hurts, but you know how to value more the effort that it means to get there and win it, so I hope on Saturday to be able to celebrate winning it more because I know what it's like to lose it," he said.

The team, according to the Belgian, arrives with "excitement and desire", emphasizing that they all arrive "well in the final". "Obviously here I am in the biggest club and the one that has won the most European trophies and that is why I hope to add another and be part of the club's history," Courtois stressed.

"They are young boys who don't think too much, they go out on the pitch and play. The moment you think too much is when you are going to make mistakes, and they are young boys who have come to Real Madrid, who know what that it is, that they love the club and that they know what they have to do to win", Courtois stressed about the youth of teammates such as Vinicius, Rodryho, Valverde or Camavinga, of whom he has no doubts because "they have played important games and it does not change either both from a match like the one the other day against City".

The Belgian goalkeeper did not want to get wet about the non-signing of Kylian Mbappé, who goes into the background before the important appointment on Saturday. "Here we have to talk only about the final, we want to play that final and win it. We have the best here in the Madrid dressing room and that is what interests us," he settled.

"Each player has his own way of choosing and his decisions, nobody can get into another player's head. I was dying years ago to come to Real Madrid before signing and I know how special it is to play at Real Madrid. You just have to look at the comebacks we've had at the Bernabéu to see what Real Madrid is, but I think that if you're not here you don't really know what Real Madrid is, although from the outside you can see what this club is and the greatness that it has and we hope to add another trophy to the greatness of the club next Saturday," concluded Courtois.