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Former Chelsea man Thibaut Courtois finally made his Real Madrid debut last weekend after his move from west London to the Spanish capital this summer.
The Belgium international signed a six-year contract with the Los Blancos side while Mateo Kovacic moved to Stamford Bridge on loan. Chelsea, on the other hand, signed Kepa Arrizabalaga from Athletic Bilbao as his replacement.
Courtois' manner of exit from the Bridge wasn't taken well by Chelsea fans. He was offered a new long-term deal to stay at the West London club but he refused to sign a new contract as he entered the final year of his deal.
The 26-year-old goalkeeper tried to force a move to Real Madrid and eventually got what he wanted, bagging a £35 million transfer to the La Liga giants.
Courtois has since been second to Real Madrid's Keylor Navas between the sticks. It was only until Saturday that the Belgian was picked by Julen Lopetegui as the starting goalie.
The game was his first La Liga game since 2014. Despite Courtois being unable to keep a clean sheet, Real Madrid beat Leganes 4-1.
Following the victory, Courtois spoke about the difference between Real Madrid and Chelsea and his comments on the subject hasn't gone down well with the Blues fans.
"In training, you see that the level is high," Courtois said. "I am now experiencing on a daily basis that Sergio Ramos is the best centre-back in the world. The level [at Real Madrid] is higher than at Chelsea", he added.
The goalkeeper continued, "[The Santiago Bernabeu] is twice as big [as Stamford Bridge], of course, it's a very different feeling. If you look forward you only see a wall of people, while at Stamford Bridge you can still see the sky or the hotel behind the grandstand."
Chelsea fans have since taken to Twitter to address his comments:
FIFA recently announced the three-man shortlist for The Best FIFA Goalkeeper award on Monday and Courtois has been nominated alongside Hugo Lloris and Kasper Schmeichel. The winner will be announced at FIFA's upcoming ceremony on September 24 in London
