The leader’s wall

Real Madrid has life insurance in the goal. Courtois, at 29, is in the best moment of his career and against Athletic he left a new saving performance, with a stop in the second half that prevented a new tie. Before, in the first act, he could do little to avoid Sancet’s goal, a goal that broke a great streak of the Belgian goalkeeper: 538 minutes without conceding a goal in an official match with Madrid.

This record is the fifth best streak in the history of the white team, surpassed only by the 524 ‘that Buyo had a clean sheet (1986), the 613’ of Araquistáin (1961), the 658 ‘of Buyo (1995) and the 952 ‘by Casillas (2014).

With half the league already played (19 games, although repeating against Athletic twice), Courtois has only conceded 16 goals, averaging less than one target against per game (0.8 per game). For that record, he has relied on the good performance of the couple formed by Militao and Alaba, although in many meetings it has been Thibaut who has allowed him to score points with brilliant performances.

Until 2026

After an initial season and a half in white in which he cast some doubts, Courtois regained his confidence and He has returned to the level for which Madrid signed him, the one who wore in the 2018 World Cup in Russia (he was chosen as the best goalkeeper of the tournament). Now he is indisputable in the goal and also in the dressing room, where he has earned the respect of his teammates and is one of the authorized voices. This performance was rewarded by the Madrid leaders, who last summer extended his contract until 2026. There are Courtois for a while at the Bernabéu …