Real Madrid once again proved that they’re the comeback kings, this time with a stunning second-half comeback against Sevilla.
Los Blancos were down 2-0 after a lacklustre first half, in front of a packed Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
After an exhaustive CL tie against Chelsea, the Madrid side evidently looked leggy and weren’t sharp enough during the first 45.
However, they turned it around during the second and looked like a rejuvenated team, eventually winning 3-2.
Unfortunately, the thrilling game was marred by controversial refereeing decisions, including a goal by Vinicius Jr in the 74th minute, which was chalked off for handball.
VAR decisions are often controversial, and this was no exception. Debates broke out online, and naturally, in the venue itself as well.
This led to a rather intriguing moment between Madrid keeper Thibaut Courtois and the Sevilla fans seated behind his goal.
Playing in front of a hostile, partisan crowd is certainly a challenge, and footballers face it every week. The challenge might just be a tad more difficult for the keepers, as opposition fans are often stationed right behind their goal.
And of course, they try their best to sabotage the keeper’s efforts.
My favourite moment last night. Courtois taking a seat and chatting to Sevilla fans during the VAR check about whether it was handball from Vinicius and the goal was going to be ruled out pic.twitter.com/FqhJl9S27a
But that doesn’t matter when you have someone as composed as the Belgian in goal, and this moment proved just that.
As the supposed goal was being checked for VAR, Courtois took a seat on the hoardings and appeared to have a chat with opposition fans.
Perhaps discussing their verdict on the incident or perhaps explaining the rules, the interaction appeared to be genuine, polite and without any airs of grandeur.
The scenes led to praise from fans, for the goalkeeper’s composure and poise during a decisive moment, and it’s always lovely to see opposition fans and players getting along, even if it’s for a moment.
With 3 points in the bag, Real continue their charge toward the La Liga title and now holds a 15 point lead over 2nd placed Barcelona.
