Real suffered their second loss of the season after Alexis Mac Allister scored the only of the game on the hour mark, heading home from a free-kick. ..Continue Reading
That was the sole occasion Courtois was beaten in the match, where he registered eight saves—including a remarkable stop to deny Dominik Szoboszlai from close range in the first half.
As has often been the case against Liverpool, the towering Belgian delivered a standout display in goal—nearly matching his legendary performance in the 2022 Champions League final.
During the match, respected journalist Guillem Balague revealed the deeper reason behind Courtois’ added drive when facing English opposition.
After Liverpool’s Alisson Becker won a best goalkeeper poll Balague ran, the former Atletico Madrid and Chelsea shotstopper messaged him to ask “why they don’t see in England what he does”.
Following his masterclass in Paris in 2022, Balague claims he spoke to him post-match and said, “what will they say now in England??” during a hug.
Despite Courtois’ excellence, Real endured their first Champions League defeat of the season—potentially complicating their path to a top-eight finish and automatic qualification, avoiding a play-off round like last year.
After the game, Courtois offered a candid reflection on the team’s errors at Anfield—highlighting unnecessary fouls and a lack of sharpness in attack.
“It’s a very difficult stadium where you can lose, you have to show your face, play better, but these are matches that are decided by details,” he told Movistar.
“It’s a shame, I tried to keep the team together, but in the second half, especially, we committed too many fouls near the area, where they are good and that’s how they scored the goal.
“We were good with the ball, we defended well, but we lacked something in the final third, where we struggled to get forward and lost possession too often.
“We need to improve. Ultimately, we’re playing at one of the toughest grounds in the Champions League, and we can lose, even if we don’t want to. Now we have to beat Olympiacos away and then face Manchester City at home.”
Real currently sit fifth in the Champions League standings with nine points and will face Olympiacos on 26 November, followed by a home clash with Manchester City on 10 December.
They will then conclude the league phase with matches against Monaco and Benfica in January.
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