Real Madrid goalkeeper believes winning the Clasico at the Camp Nou would help send a strong message after being on a bad streak in the fixture in these last few years.
Courtois was speaking to DAZN, where he was asked about the Clasico, and he was able to signify the importance of breaking the bad streak.
He said: “Maybe there was a time when stars were missing from El Clasico, but now there are new players on the scene. We have Viní, Mbappé, Jude. They have Raphinha, Lamine, who is a fantastic player. It’s an intense rivalry. Over the last few years they have hurt us in some games, now it is time for us to respond. Winning at their ground would send a strong message.”
Courtois also talked about respecting their rivals, and how players of the two teams differ in that sense. He said: “First of all, we have absolutely no problem saying the names of FC Barcelona players, that’s where I think we are different. It’s not a problem for us to praise someone, even if he is our rival. We respect players who are doing a good job, unlike the other side.”
The Belgian goalkeeper was also asked about who he thinks should win the Ballon d’Or, to which he gave a very interesting response. He said: “What do we do? Do we pick someone who has won trophies, or someone who was above everyone else without winning? I am thinking of Kylian, individually, no one was better than Mbappé, but we didn’t win anything, he was fourth at World Cup… but he was outstanding. Lamine was less impressive than Kylian, but he became World Champion, won titles and had a great year.”