Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois finally got his wish fulfilled. As of Wednesday, he is officially a member of Real Madrid who paid $45 million to Chelsea to get the deal done. As part of the transfer, Chelsea will also get Croatian midfielder Mateo Kovacic on a season-long loan. The deal was confirmed by both clubs on their official social media.
Courtois, who signed a six-year deal will be presented at the Santiago Bernabeu on Thursday.
👋 Bienvenido al @RealMadrid, @thibautcourtois!#WelcomeCourtois| #HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/hHqzcomSQi
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) August 8, 2018
Thibaut Courtois was looking to make a switch to Real Madrid for some time now and has even failed to report to training on Monday in order to put pressure on Chelsea to sell him. Besides his apparent wish to play for the most accomplished soccer club in the world,
Courtois has an even more important reason for why he was forcing a move to Madrid. The 26-year-old wants to spend more time with his two kids, who live in Spain’s capital.
“I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude for the four fantastic years that have passed. Chelsea FC will always have a fantastic place in my heart,” – Courtois wrote on Facebook following the move. “I want to thank the fans for their great support over the years. I hope you understand that being closer to my kids was considerable in my decision.”
Chelsea didn’t wait for too long to find a replacement for the Belgian goalkeeper. After the transfer was official, the club moved swiftly and acquired Atletic Bilbao’s Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Chelsea activated Kepa’s release clause of $93 million, making him the world’s most expensive goalkeeper. Interesting enough, Real Madrid was previously considered one of the favorites to acquire the 23-year-old Spaniard this summer.
