"After the World Cup, a start was not so obvious": Thibaut Courtois explains the exit of Chelsea

Thibaut Coutois unveiled the details of the tense discussions that allowed the goalkeeper to move from Chelsea to Real Madrid in the summer of 2018.

The 26-year-old made 154 appearances for Chelsea between 2014 and 2018, winning two Premier League titles, a League Cup and an FA Cup before heading to Bernabeu in August.

In a frank interview with HLN, the Belgian explains that he had trouble negotiating his departure with the director of Blues, Marina Granovskaia.

Thibaut Coutois revealed details of the discussions that allowed the goalkeeper to leave Chelsea

He said: "Marina is hard to negotiate, it's normal. Football players who talk about contracts, salaries, transfers, etc., which engage players and eliminate them, have the toughest job.

& # 39; Only in March, Marina and I had a meeting during which I indicated that I wanted to leave. Living in London and the Premier League schedule prevented me from regularly seeing my children, who lived in Madrid.

"Are you going to find something?" Marina m asked. & # 39; Be rebadured, & # 39; was my answer. "Okay, we'll let you go and we'll find a replacement."

The Belgian says that there are times when he feels "unappreciated"

Courtois continued, "What happened? After the World Cup, a start was suddenly not so obvious. The possible replacements were too expensive. Sorry, it was not the rendezvous. Then you have to work hard for a moment.

The winner of the FIFA Top Goalkeeper Award also shared his opinion on the criticism he received after returning to Spain.

"There are times when I feel that I am not appreciated enough. What sometimes appears on all social media … (sigh) but not just me, hey – today, it is far too easy to name the guardians when you lose. & # 39;

When asked when he read the comments posted about him on social media, Courtois said, "No, not everything. But if someone writes something blatantly about me, I will finally understand it – through friends or family.

"I've conceded a lot of goals with Real Madrid, but the one who follows me knows I'm not in a bad season. I do not try to throw myself. I do not want to go home every day and say, "He said that, he said that."

Courtois stars in the victory of the FA Cup final at Manchester United in May 2018