Only Courtois walks alongside a Madrid that fails at Anfield

Courtois, motivated against the Premier

Guillem Balagué, one of the most respected voices in English football, mentioned during another visit of Real Madrid to Anfield that Thibaut Courtois feels a special motivation when facing teams from the Premier League. It all goes back to the 2022 final, when it was claimed in England that Alisson was better than him. There´s no need to recall what came next: a legendary performance that gave a Champions League to Madrid and left the goalkeeper with a phrase that still resonates: "What will they say now in England?". This time, however, the English finally managed to bring him down. Mac Allister was the one who broke the resistance, after putting the goalkeeper through all kinds of tests and keeping a Madrid that barely showed signs of its best version alive. Xabi Alonso´s tactics had no effect, and like so many European nights, the white team relied on individual brilliance. But only one responded: Courtois, who prevented a greater catastrophe and managed to mask a result that could have been scandalous. Despite Liverpool´s doubts on other nights, this time they responded with surgical precision.

Courtois and VAR save Madrid

The match started with Vinicius trying to inject rhythm and energy into the team, but soon Bradley completely neutralized him. Beyond tactical analyses, the match once again demonstrated that in football, the difference is made by players like Courtois. The Belgian goalkeeper confirmed once again why he has been the best in his position for years. Only he was able to position himself exactly to prevent Madrid from crumbling before halftime and in the final stretch of the match. The attempts of Bellingham and Güler between the lines found no response from a disappearing Mbappé, while Courtois made three otherworldly interventions. The most spectacular was an impossible save against a lethal shot from Szoboszlai. The goalkeeper completed his recital with another prodigious save against Mac Allister. Earlier, referee Istvan Kovacs had been involved in a controversial action after reviewing a handball by Tchouaméni in the area in the 33rd minute. The ball clearly hit his arm, although it was tucked against his body. The play fell into that gray area of the rules, and after interpreting the images, Madrid emerged unscathed. Tchouaméni left smiling, knowing he had dodged punishment.

Mac Allister breaks the wall

The second half started with the same script. The more they attacked him, the more Courtois grew. He seemed like a cartoon villain who always returns to frustrate his rivals, driving a Liverpool that deserved more to distraction. The Hungarian Szoboszlai was one of those who tried the hardest, but the Belgian responded time and again, even in aerial plays where he also shone. Neither the million-dollar signing Ekitike nor the imposing Van Dijk could beat him. Madrid, for its part, began to fade. Only Valverde held the team in the exchange of blows, while Carreras faced a harsh lesson against Salah. The white team played with fire, conceding space everywhere and defending with insecurity. Amid the confusion, Xabi Alonso decided to move Güler to the right, thus losing the little control his team had. The punishment came from a set piece: Mac Allister took advantage of another defensive miscoordination to score the definitive 1-0. Madrid once again showed its shortcomings in set-piece plays: it struggles to create danger and even more to defend it. This time, not even the wall Courtois could prevent the story from being written against them.