Real Madrid goalie Thibaut Courtois has confirmed that he will miss the Euros 2024 tournament with Belgium due to injury. Courtois is currently undergoing a recovery programme, after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament injury. In an interview with Sporza, he revealed his decision not to participate in the upcoming competition in Germany, citing the need to focus on his recovery. “Due to the injury, there will be no European Championship for me. First, I have to recover 100% completely, and then it is better not to set a date for it.
Belgian international Thibaut Courtois – Getty image “If I am lucky, I can play another match in May. But you can never be 100% ready for a big tournament,” he added. Courtois also addressed a previous incident where he left the Belgium camp abruptly, expressing regret for his actions and apologizing to the team and fans. He explained that he felt frustrated with Belgium coach Domenico Tedesco’s decision to award the captaincy to Romelu Lukaku instead of him. “On Saturday of the match, a few hours before kick-off, Tedesco called Lukaku and me in. When he said that Romelu was captain against Austria and I was captain against Estonia on Tuesday, something broke inside me,” Courtois revealed. “It no longer worked. The fact that I no longer felt the appreciation of the federation or the coach made something explode inside me,” he said. He further criticized Tedesco, alleging that the coach had given inconsistent explanations for his captaincy decisions and had threatened to expose him if he spoke out about the issue. He also mentioned feeling ignored by Tedesco during his first international break with the coach, despite being one of the team’s captains.
