Real Madrid News
Thibaut Courtois unhappy with his Ballon d’Or ranking: “Not even on the podium”
Monday night was a special occasion for two Real Madrid superstars as Karim Benzema won the coveted Ballon d’Or 2022 Award while Thibaut Courtois picked up the Yashin Trophy for the Best Goalkeeper in 2022.
The duo had been critical to Real Madrid’s success last season and were deserving of the accolades that came their way.
However, at the same time, some of the Ballon d’Or rankings did come as a surprise. Considering how brilliant Courtois was, his finishing in seventh place in the final rankings was a bit strange.
And the Belgian international pointed that out while interacting with media after the ceremony. The 29-year-old, who is recovering from an injury, pointed out that his position should have been higher than where he eventually finished.
“I’m not saying I should win it, but I’m not even on the podium being the goalkeeper who has won La Liga and the Champions League,” Courtois said, as quoted by MARCA.
Courtois then acknowledged that winning the Ballon d’Or for a goalkeeper will be next to impossible.
“First of all, I am very happy for Karim Benzema. It seems that scoring a goal is better than stopping it. A battle that remains to be won. Seeing the logic and knowing how they vote, I knew that I would have no chance of winning it,” he said.
“I see it as impossible, for a goalkeeper, it is impossible to win this award. I don’t know if as a goalkeeper you can do more than what I did last year,” the Belgian added.
Courtois also provided an update on his fitness situation, stating: “I’ve had 3 or 4 training sessions and I’m improving. I hope to be on the pitch soon.”
The 29-year-old also expressed his surprise at the fact that Real Madrid were named the third-best team in Europe despite their success last season, whereas Manchester City came out on top.
“We all have a strange face with the City thing,” he said.
On Real Madrid’s recent win against arch-rivals Barcelona in El Clasico, Courtois said: “I had a good time in El Clasico, but I suffered a lot. I had more nerves than playing on the pitch”.
The current edition of the Real Madrid squad is full of young talents, who have shown remarkable potential in recent years.
Arda Guler is among the young players looking to make a mark in European football in the years to come.
The young Turk joined Real Madrid earlier this summer, rejecting many other European giants in the process.
Toni Kroos mentoring Guler at Real Madrid
Guler has not enjoyed the best of starts to his life at Santiago Bernabeu, as he is spending a brief time on the sidelines due to an injury.
However, Guler has not stopped working on his characteristics, as he looks to kickstart his Real Madrid career on a positive note.
To that end, the former Fenerbahce starlet is receiving some key support from one of Real Madrid’s midfield pillars in the form of Toni Kroos.
This is according to MARCA, which suggests that the German international is mentoring Guler in his early days at Santiago Bernabeu.
Kroos: huge ‘sponsor’ of Guler
The report highlights how Toni Kroos is a huge admirer of Arda Guler. The German had even heaped praise on the youngster from Turkey when he joined the club earlier in the summer.
Guler, therefore, is closely training with Kroos, whose years of experience, composure, and knowledge of football, could help the youngster grow at Santiago Bernabeu.
This fits in well with Carlo Ancelotti’s vision at Real Madrid, as the Italian boss wants youngsters to have room to grow, especially with guidance from some of the older guards in the team.
It is one of the key reasons Real Madrid wanted to stick to Kroos and Luka Modric, despite bringing in Arda Guler and Jude Bellingham in the summer.
Guler, therefore, has the stage set for him to start his Real Madrid career on a strong note. After impressing in training, the next step for the youngster is to make a promising debut, which is just around the corner.
