“I Want To Retire At Real Madrid,” Says Courtois

He spoke ahead of the Club World Cup game against Pachuca

Speaking in Charlotte, North Carolina, before facing Pachuca in the FIFA Club World Cup, Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois addressed speculation surrounding his future by saying, “I hope I can renew. I’m very happy at Real Madrid, playing here is a dream and every year that passes is another dream. I’m at the club’s complete disposal, they know I want to stay here… and hopefully retire here. But now it’s time to prove myself on the pitch. The rest will be easy to resolve.”

Courtois on how long the team needs to gel
“I can’t give an exact date or number of days. But we’ve been at it for a week now and we’re getting closer and closer to what the coach wants. We’re watching videos, having meetings… and there’s no choice but to go through trial and error, trial and error. Normally, there’s a pre-season with three, four or five matches, but here it’s the opposite. This is starting and we’re already in a tournament. That’s what Xabi said: we have to go out there to win, give it our all and wait.”

Courtois on his comments about Ancelotti’s influence still showing
“I didn’t say it as a criticism. Not at all. We’ve won so much in the last four years! I just meant that now it’s a bit different. But it’s not a criticism, it’s just that there comes a time when you have to adapt to something different, get closer to that style. It’s not a criticism of the last four years, it’s just something different.”

Courtois on his relationship with Dean Huijsen
“We almost always speak Dutch, it just comes naturally. He’s a great centre-back… Also huge in size! You have to get used to playing with him. The first game went well, but all these processes take time. He’s a smart guy and he’ll do well.”

Courtois on Pachuca
“Of course, we played them in December! They’re a great team and they’ve signed Kennedy, who I played with at Chelsea. They’re a great team and they’ll make it difficult.”

Managingmadrid.com