BlueLion. 21,482 Posted September 19, 2011 Share Posted September 19, 2011 He has had a very promising start - it isn't just that he is keeping clean sheets, but that he is making very impressive saves as well. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamilton 1,928 Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 Again a clean sheet today, Atletico won 4-0 against Sporting Gijon. Next up is Barcelona this weekend.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LDN Blue 7,900 Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 De Gea made his name in his outstanding performance for Athletico vs Barcelona last year.. Let's hope Courtois upstages him! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
zolayes 14,489 Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 good news ..Ross and Hilario are ok but we need a good back up for Cech...and a thought ..keepers could be rotated.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Swoopz 183 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Chelsea have a bad record with loaning out players: so far few of the youngsters that have spent time at other clubs have excelled. Daniel Sturridge is one exception. Could Thibaut Courtois be another?Over the summer, Chelsea signed 19 year-old Belgian keeper Thibaut Courtois from Racing Genk, the champions of last season`s Jupiler League. The sticksman barely had time to put pen to paper and pick up a few Adidas goalkeeper shirts with his name on it, as he was lent out to Atlético de Madrid. Since then, he has had a blinder.Courtois has played every minute of Atlético`s season so far, four League games and one Europa cup match. In the process, he has become the Liga`s 'Zamora` (the keeper that has conceded the least goals): Courtois` net has been broached once.And Atlético are delighted. They lost one young keeper over the summer, David De Gea, to Manchester United. However, they appear to have picked up an even younger one, Courtois, who seems to be doing even better. He is earning rave reviews in Spain, despite his youth showing the seriousness and serenity that belies his age. Courtois is a big lad, 1m93, but also extraordinarily agile. His gravity-defying saves are regular features on the matchday highlights reel of the national news.Courtois has competition in the Atlético squad for the goalkeeper`s jersey, in particular with Sergio Asenjo a pretty good sticksman. It speaks volumes about the Belgian that, despite wearing a number 13, he has become Atlético`s number 1. With a single goal let in, he`s officially the best keeper in the Liga. Of course he`s also a modest kid, and when asked about this, he`s happy to share the glory with his team-mates. "It`s fantastic how things are going for me. I`m pleased to be the Zamora, but let`s not forget that I am because of the work of the whole team, not only mine. In games against Racing [de Santander] and Sporting [de Gijon] I didn`t have much work as my team-mates defended very well. There is a good organisation on the pitch and that`s why I`ve kept a clean sheet".It`s worth drawing attention to Courtois` magnificent start to the season as he is a Chelsea player and a loan to such a prestigious club suggests great things. "It will be difficult to continue like this as the Liga is very strong. Now we play against Barça [Atlético visit FC Unicef tomorrow night] and there are very strong teams such as Valencia, Real Madrid and Villareal. I hope to keep many clean sheets, but it will be complicated".One other of Atlético`s statistics is irritating: at the other end of the pitch, the Liga`s top scorer is Radamel Falcão. 5 goals in three games (despite the season being 4 matchdays old, he signed for Atlético after the season begun). And Falcão is efficiency made striker: 15 shots, 11 on target. 5 goals. And to think that he was linked to Chelsea shortly after his former coach, Andre Villas Boas signed for Chelsea.Courtois gave an interview to a Belgian newspaper in which he said that apparently Chelsea have a career plan for the keeper: one or two seasons at Atlético, followed by another season loan at a Premier League club. At that point the player will be considered as Chelsea`s number 1, displacing none other than Petr Čech. If so, the good news is that Chelsea have a definite idea of what to do with this youngster, as opposed to the normal practice for Chelsea which is to send a player on loan simply because they don`t know what to do with him. Even better is the fact that the player himself appears to be a great, great signing and is making the most of his opportunities at a pretty high level.But although Thibaut Courtois is clearly something special, is he really going to replace Petr Čech between the sticks? That`s the difficulty with goalkeepers: unlike the players in every other position, the opportunities are scarce. In 3 years` time, Čech will have barely scraped past 30, which is far from being past it for a keeper. If all goes to plan, our Czech will have serious competition breathing over his shoulder. Courtois is already making waves in Spain, and it will be interesting to see how he fares this weekend in possibly the most demanding fixture of all: the visit to the Nou Camp.http://www.chelsea.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=525484 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Swoopz 183 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Chelsea have a bad record with loaning out players: so far few of the youngsters that have spent time at other clubs have excelled. Daniel Sturridge is one exception. Could Thibaut Courtois be another?Over the summer, Chelsea signed 19 year-old Belgian keeper Thibaut Courtois from Racing Genk, the champions of last season`s Jupiler League. The sticksman barely had time to put pen to paper and pick up a few Adidas goalkeeper shirts with his name on it, as he was lent out to Atlético de Madrid. Since then, he has had a blinder.Courtois has played every minute of Atlético`s season so far, four League games and one Europa cup match. In the process, he has become the Liga`s 'Zamora` (the keeper that has conceded the least goals): Courtois` net has been broached once.And Atlético are delighted. They lost one young keeper over the summer, David De Gea, to Manchester United. However, they appear to have picked up an even younger one, Courtois, who seems to be doing even better. He is earning rave reviews in Spain, despite his youth showing the seriousness and serenity that belies his age. Courtois is a big lad, 1m93, but also extraordinarily agile. His gravity-defying saves are regular features on the matchday highlights reel of the national news.Courtois has competition in the Atlético squad for the goalkeeper`s jersey, in particular with Sergio Asenjo a pretty good sticksman. It speaks volumes about the Belgian that, despite wearing a number 13, he has become Atlético`s number 1. With a single goal let in, he`s officially the best keeper in the Liga. Of course he`s also a modest kid, and when asked about this, he`s happy to share the glory with his team-mates. "It`s fantastic how things are going for me. I`m pleased to be the Zamora, but let`s not forget that I am because of the work of the whole team, not only mine. In games against Racing [de Santander] and Sporting [de Gijon] I didn`t have much work as my team-mates defended very well. There is a good organisation on the pitch and that`s why I`ve kept a clean sheet".It`s worth drawing attention to Courtois` magnificent start to the season as he is a Chelsea player and a loan to such a prestigious club suggests great things. "It will be difficult to continue like this as the Liga is very strong. Now we play against Barça [Atlético visit FC Unicef tomorrow night] and there are very strong teams such as Valencia, Real Madrid and Villareal. I hope to keep many clean sheets, but it will be complicated".One other of Atlético`s statistics is irritating: at the other end of the pitch, the Liga`s top scorer is Radamel Falcão. 5 goals in three games (despite the season being 4 matchdays old, he signed for Atlético after the season begun). And Falcão is efficiency made striker: 15 shots, 11 on target. 5 goals. And to think that he was linked to Chelsea shortly after his former coach, Andre Villas Boas signed for Chelsea.Courtois gave an interview to a Belgian newspaper in which he said that apparently Chelsea have a career plan for the keeper: one or two seasons at Atlético, followed by another season loan at a Premier League club. At that point the player will be considered as Chelsea`s number 1, displacing none other than Petr Čech. If so, the good news is that Chelsea have a definite idea of what to do with this youngster, as opposed to the normal practice for Chelsea which is to send a player on loan simply because they don`t know what to do with him. Even better is the fact that the player himself appears to be a great, great signing and is making the most of his opportunities at a pretty high level.But although Thibaut Courtois is clearly something special, is he really going to replace Petr Čech between the sticks? That`s the difficulty with goalkeepers: unlike the players in every other position, the opportunities are scarce. In 3 years` time, Čech will have barely scraped past 30, which is far from being past it for a keeper. If all goes to plan, our Czech will have serious competition breathing over his shoulder. Courtois is already making waves in Spain, and it will be interesting to see how he fares this weekend in possibly the most demanding fixture of all: the visit to the Nou Camp.http://www.chelsea.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=525484 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ack17 205 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Atletico Madrid will face Barca this week Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Waterfall 893 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 The game against Barca will be a huge test. Really excited about the lad. We'll see how the GK situation at Chelsea works out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Spike 12,048 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Well don't be surprised if Atletico win or draw against Barca. Barca's defence is in shambles. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LDN Blue 7,900 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Falcao will rape them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamilton 1,928 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Really looking forward to tonight!! C'mon Thibaut.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kostas 1,468 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 (edited) 2 seasons at a top Spanish club and then a loan like the one Joe Hart had and he could be worth double what we paid for him.The game against Barcelona kicks off in a few minutes, I'll be watching him. Edited September 24, 2011 by Kostas Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TacticalBlues 2,817 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 (edited) Damn they just conceded, class by Villa though, he couldn't do anything. Edited September 24, 2011 by Eviltwinz93 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Waterfall 893 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 1-0 Barca Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamilton 1,928 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 No chance for Thibaut Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Waterfall 893 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 own goal. unfortunate Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TacticalBlues 2,817 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Omg great save by Thibaut a defender own goal though... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamilton 1,928 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Bad luck there, good save first Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kostas 1,468 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 Terrible luck for Atletico. 2 goals down by the 16th minute, it'll turn into the usual fight to save face from this point. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamilton 1,928 Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 3-0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.