10th August, 2023
Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois sustained ACL damage in a training session on Thursday and is likely to miss the rest of the season.
Courtois will now have surgery on the problem. The best-case scenario is a return in April of next year, but there is a fear that Courtois’ season is over before it has started.
The 31-year-old has been a constant presence in the Real side since joining from Chelsea in 2018. He has played 230 times for the Spanish club, winning two La Liga titles and one Champions League.
His injury leaves Real with only Andriy Lunin as a senior goalkeeping option, just two days before they begin the new season with a trip to Athletic Bilbao.
Lunin, the 24-year-old Ukraine international, played 12 times last season for Real. He has made nine La Liga appearances for the club since signing from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2018, as well as embarking on loan spells with Leganes, Real Valladolid and Real Oviedo.
Courtois’s injury will also be of concern to Belgium head coach Domenico Tedesco, ahead of next summer’s European Championship in Germany.
Belgium sit second in their qualification group as it stands, three points behind Austria having played a game fewer.