Thibaut Courtois proved to be an absolute bargain for Chelsea after he joined the club back in 2011.
Chelsea signed Thibaut Courtois from Belgian side Genk for just under £8m before sending him to Atletico Madrid on loan.
There, he developed into one of the best goalkeepers in the world and even helped Atletico to knock Chelsea out of the Champions League in the 2013/14 season.
Courtois eventually succeeded Petr Cech as the Blues’ first-choice shot-stopper, helping them to win two Premier League titles, but it looks like the 32-year-old could have ended up at one of their fierce rivals instead. Kepa Arrizabalaga has performed well this term, but the Spaniard was never able to successfully replace Courtois at Chelsea following his move to Real Madrid.
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Thibaut Courtois chose Chelsea over Tottenham
As well as Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and some other clubs were also interested in Courtois when he was still playing for Genk.
However, the Belgian felt that the Blues had the best project at the time and decided to join them as a result.
Speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents, Courtois said: “Obviously, there was some interest of Tottenham at that moment. There was some interest of Chelsea, some other teams from other countries. And obviously Chelsea at that moment had the best project for me in the long term.”
Chelsea recently signed another Belgian goalkeeper from Genk, Mike Penders. Penders is now being branded as the new Courtois.
Thibaut Courtois never wanted to leave Chelsea
Courtois left Chelsea for Real Madrid almost seven years ago, a move that he will not regret.
Since his arrival at the Santiago Bernabeu, the Belgium international, who has not been playing for his country because of a feud with former manager Domenico Tedesco, has won three La Liga titles and two Champions League trophies.
But his agent has claimed in the past that had the shot-stopper’s family been in London, Courtois would have stayed at Chelsea.
Ultimately, it is such a shame that Chelsea lost Courtois, especially when you look at their goalkeeper situation right now.
Enzo Maresca recently axed Robert Sanchez from the team after some serious mistakes between the sticks, while Filip Jorgensen conceded three goals last time out in the Blues’ 3-0 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion.
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