Thibaut Courtois

 

{Player Profile Updated 28/07/2012}







Date of Birth: - 11th of May 1992.



Height: - 6 ft 6 in.



Nationality: - Belgian.



Position: - Goalkeeper.



Current Club: - Chelsea. (on loan at Atletico Madrid)



Estimated Market Value: - Around 9 million pounds.



Linked with: - N/A







Club Career:



-After progressing through the Genk youth system, Courtois who was only 16 years old made his first team debut for Genk on the 17th of April 2009 against Gent.



-In the 2010/2011 season he received the Goalkeeper of the Year and Genk's Player of the Year award. (14 clean sheets)



-On the 26th of July 2011, Chelsea confirmed that the transfer of Courtois was concluded and that he had signed a five-year contract with the club.



-On the same day he signed for Chelsea, Courtois completed a season-long loan deal to Spanish La Liga club Atletico Madrid.



-He made his debut for Atletico in the UEFA Europa League match against Vitoria Guimaraes.



-Courtois kept four clean sheets in his first six La Liga games.



-On the 4th of July 2012, Chelsea confirmed that Courtois' loan had been extended for a further 12 months, after they had reached an agreement with Atletico Madrid.







International Career:



-Courtois has made appearances for Belgium U18's and the senior squad.



-He made his U18 debut in 2009.



-On the 7th of October 2011, Courtois was named in the Euro 2012 Qualifying match-day squad for Belgium against Kazakhstan which ended in a 4-1 win for Belgium.



-On the 15th of November 2011, Courtois made his debut starting in a friendly for Belgium against France, making him the youngest keeper to ever play for the Belgian national team, the game ended in a goalless draw.







Club Statistics





Racing Genk:

2008/2009 season - 1 appearance, 0 clean sheet.

2009/2010 season - 0 appearance, 0 clean sheet.

2010/2011 season - 44 appearances, 14 clean sheets.





Chelsea (no appearances):





Atletico Madrid (loan):

2011/2012 season - 52 appearances, 23 clean sheets.







International Statistics:

Belgium - 2 appearances, 1 clean sheet.







General Comments:



I believe Courtois is a very good goalkeeper and has the potential to be world class. Lets begin with a round up of things he needs to improve on. Like most young keepers he struggles to make decisions such as coming for crosses. But this is common (we see David De Gea make mistakes often, but he too is young and is very talented) and he also needs to improve on saving low shots (he's a big guy, can't be easy getting down low) but other than that he doesn't have many more weaknesses. Only having two weak points at the age of 20 is very good, and this really shows how talented he is.



Now lets move on to his strengths, His positioning is fantastic, He comes of his line and makes himself 'big,' he's a good shot stopper and for such a big guy, his reflexes are exceptional. Overall he seems to have allot more strengths than weaknesses.



But remember he is still young, one day he might not have any weaknesses but then again he might be a flop. You just can't tell with any young player. My gut feeling on Courtois is that he will become an outstanding keeper. He is a regular at Atletico Madrid and in Chelsea's point of view this is fantastic, this will give him a chance to strengthen his weaknesses and progress as a keeper. Can he replace Petr Cech, and become a quality player in the Premier League? I believe he can, actually i think he could become better than Cech. I really do think Courtois is one to look out for.







Summary of Courtois:



Strengths - Positioning, Reflexes, Shot stopping and makes himself 'big'

Weaknesses - Decision making and saving low shots.





The Business End of the Profile.



Well Courtois is staying out on loan this season, which is a good decision Chelsea made. I expect in a few years he will become a Chelsea regular. (although he has big boots to fill) in my opinion he could become one of the world best, that is all i have to say about this young talent.





I would be very interested to hear your opinion on Courtois so please leave a comment.



Thanks.



Ed053-}