It’s been quite a ride for Thiabut Courtois with Atletico Madrid, and it might end with two historic titles in the next month or so, but if Jose Mourinho has his way, the Belgian goalkeeper will be coming back to Chelsea after three years of being on loan, this time to become the team’s number one goalkeeper, which leaves questions around what Petr Cech will do in the future.
Cech has been very good this season and there isn’t a real reason to drop him from the lineup, but Chelsea are afraid of losing their talented young goalkeeper who isn’t happy about being loaned out. He might actually prefer playing for Atletico Madrid, but no one is signing him at the moment because Chelsea aren’t foolish enough to sell.
According to the Times, losing to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League semifinal seemed to be something of back breaker for Mourinho. Aside from his overstated disappointment from certain players like Eden Hazard and Oscar, facing the goalkeeper the club owns and tried to prevent from playing against it seemed to help him make up his mind.
According to the Telegraph, it also has something to do with Cech’s injury status. He has been delaying a shoulder surgery for quite some time and after he undergoes it, he’ll be off the pitches for quite some time. Mourinho isn’t “going to war” with Schwarzer as his number one option, so bringing back Courtois to begin his Chelsea tenure as a number one keeper, something that’s obviously important to him, will begin.
The 21-year old is the number one goalkeeper for Belgium with 15 caps and will be their starting number one in the World Cup, with Simon Mignolet waiting behind him. Courtois has been playing for Atletico since 2011, playing in a total of 150 matches. He has won the Europa League, Copa Del Rey and European Super Cup with them, and was also awarded with the Zamora award in 2013.