The original plan was for Thibaut Courtois to make his comeback at Real Madrid in April after a long break. But that will not happen. The Belgian top keeper, who has also largely ticked off the European Championship in the summer, will have to take another short break
On August 10, 2023, Real Madrid announced that Thibaut Courtois had torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. After a necessary operation, the Belgian international goalkeeper went through the usual ordeal – muscle building, stabilization, rehab measures after rehab measures.
In the meantime, Real substitute Andriy Lunin (25) had taken over the job in the Real goal, did a good job overall and certainly prepared himself to be replaced again soon. As Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti had recently made clear, Courtois’ comeback was imminent
“There will be a mini-break when the Copa del Rey final comes around,” Ancelotti said on March 1 about his injured duo Courtois and defender Eder Militao. “At this stage, they will start working with the team again. After April 14, after the game in Mallorca, I think they could play again.” Then – on the weekend around April 21 – the Clasico will take place in La Liga.
Investigations “not yet completed “
However, while 26-year-old Eder Militao, who also suffered cruciate ligament damage, can really expect to return to Real soon, Courtois, who only recently returned to team training, has now gone straight back to the infirmary.
As the Whites announced on Tuesday, Courtois has suffered a tear in the medial meniscus of his right knee. The veteran, who has played for Real Madrid since 2018, is now facing another long-term absence, which could lead to a complete end to the season and, for Belgium, to missing the European Championships in Germany (June 14 to July 14). Even though the goalkeeper was not expecting to play in the European Championships in December 2023 anyway, partly due to differences with national team coach Domenico Tedesco: “If I’m lucky, I’ll be able to play again in May. But then you’re not 100 percent ready for a big tournament.”
Although the Madrilenians are not giving an exact downtime – partly because the investigations into the injury are “not yet complete” – it is the second serious injury in a year for Courtois. Spanish media expect him to be out for several weeks
