Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola makes surprise Ballon d'Or admission about Real Madrid superstar

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has indicated that Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois deserved to win the Ballon d'Or last year.

Courtois enjoyed a stellar 2021-22 campaign in which Los Blancos won La Liga as well as the UEFA Champions League. The Belgian conceded 46 goals in 52 matches across competitions and recorded 22 clean sheets, including one in their Champions League final win over Liverpool.

His exploits saw him win the Yashin Trophy, awarded to the best goalkeeper of the season. The Ballon d'Or, meanwhile, went to his Real Madrid teammate Karim Benzema, who registered 44 goals and 15 assists in 46 matches across competitions last term.

Guardiola, however, believes Courtois would have also been a deserving candidate to lift the award. Speaking after the second leg of Manchester City's Champions League semifinal tie with Los Blancos, the Spanish tactician said (as quoted by @theMadridZone on Twitter):

“If they had given the Ballon d'Or to Courtois last year it would also have been deserved.”

Guardiola's comments came after Courtois shone in an otherwise sorry night for Real Madrid. Carlo Ancelotti's men were hammered 4-0 by Manchester City at the Etihad on Wednesday, May 17, losing their last-four tie 5-1 on aggregate.

The Premier League giants dominated the first half, with their Spanish opponents not even completing 30 passes as a unit in the opening 22 minutes. In that time, Courtois made two brilliant saves to deny Erling Haaland and keep his team in the game.

However, Bernardo Silva opened the scoring in the 23rd minute with a strong finish before doubling Manchester City's lead 14 minutes later. Los Blancos tried to stage a comeback in the second half, but Manuel Akanji's 76th-minute deflected strike put the game to bed.

Julian Alvarez then scored in stoppage time just moments after coming on to secure a memorable win for his side.

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"We struggled to get into the game" - Real Madrid's Thibaut Courtois reflects on UCL semifinal loss to Manchester City

Thibaut Courtois ultimately ended the game on Wednesday with four saves, two punches and two high claims, while completing 55% of his passes. However, the rest of his Real Madrid teammates largely collapsed under Manchester City's unrelenting pressure on and off the ball.

After the game, Courtois admitted that Los Blancos couldn't impose their will on the game due to City's pressing. The Belgian said (as quoted by Real Madrid's official website):

“They really pressed us high from the start, not letting us play the ball out and they pressured with a lot of players so we were penned back in our area.

“We dealt with it pretty well early on but we didn't manage to impose ourselves, create chances or cause them any problems. They were very comfortable and they got the goal. We struggled to get into the game.

“We started pretty well after half-time but we struggled to create chances today and we didn't pass the ball cleanly.”

Manchester City will now meet Inter Milan in the UEFA Champions League final on June 10, with their treble hopes well and truly alive. They can secure the Premier League title with a win over Chelsea this weekend and also have an FA Cup final lined up against Manchester United on 3 June.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, will end the season with La Liga fixtures against Valencia, Rayo Vallecano, Sevilla and Athletic Bilbao. Carlo Ancelotti's side have already ceded the league title to Barcelona, but will have the Copa del Rey to show for their efforts this season.