Spanish National team manager Luis Enrique recently made the brazen decision of snubbing Manchester United shot-stopper David De Gea entirely from the national side.
The Spaniard favored Athletic Bilbao keeper Unai Simon instead, citing De Gea’s ball-playing and aerial abilities as his concerns.
This led to a relentless discourse among fans on Twitter, while some found the United keeper’s omission to be unfair, others felt that Enrique’s comments were simply the truth.
Eventually, Manchester United fan and TalkSPORT presenter Mark Goldbridge budded in with his opinion.
The YouTuber found the quote to be harsh on De Gea, and then went on to draw a comparison with Real Madrid‘s Thibaut Courtois.
All these Enrique quotes about De Gea…Dave just won players player of the year. Courtois won man of the match in a UCL final and isn't quick off his line or good with his feet. A keeper's first job is to save goals and we have one of the best in the businesd
As per Goldbridge, a keeper’s primary purpose is to save goals, he tried to back up this statement by mentioning the Belgian’s UCL-winning performance against Liverpool, which included multiple crucial saves.
He also stated that Courtois isn’t quick off his line or comfortable in possession, a poor assessment to which the man himself took notice.
The Belgian responded to the tweet by sharing 3 images from the final, which showcase him being ‘quick off his line’ and collecting the ball from dangerous Liverpool set-pieces.
I was just answering the fact, that I don’t collect crosses. I would never talk bad about another goalie
— Thibaut Courtois (@thibautcourtois) June 5, 2022
When a fan argued that Courtois has the luxury of playing with a better backline as compared to De Gea, the former Chelsea man clarified that he was merely responding to the claims, rather than speaking ill about a fellow goalkeeper.
The back and forth didn’t end there as Goldbridge expanded upon his initial claim, and in response Courtois pointed out his lack of awareness.
Any frequent viewer of Los Blancos can vouch for the Belgian’s ability on the ball, and his efficient distribution.
In fact, in the very example Goldbridge opted for (UCL Final), Courtois played a crucial role in retaining possession and in the build up. This was evident especially during the first half, with Liverpool’s press in full effect the backline regularly passed back to the Belgian in order to facilitate the build up.
The stats provide further evidence, as Courtois ended up with 66 touches, a figure which was more than the likes of Luka Modric, Vini Jr, Ferland Mendy etc.
The online discourse goes on to show that the keeper is a man on a mission.
Even after producing a legacy-defining performance against Liverpool, Courtois isn’t finished. And there’s no stopping the Belgian until everyone puts some respect on his name.
