Thibaut Courtois comes off worse as two Real Madrid goalkeepers face off on international duty | OneFootball

For the last few years, the two goalkeepers Thibaut Courtois and Andriy Lunin have been competing for the starting spot at Real Madrid, with the Belgian fixed as a starter for Carlo Ancelotti.

The veteran goalie had to spend almost the whole of the last season on the sidelines with an ACL tear, and the Ukrainian gave no causes for complaints as he stepped in to replace him between the sticks.

In fact, his heroic performances were essential as the Merengues went on to win the UEFA Champions League and La Liga double last season.

However, Carlo Ancelotti was quick to resort to Courtois as soon as he returned to full fitness, so much so that the Belgian retook his starting spot between the sticks in the UCL final, despite Lunin’s highly impressive performances throughout the season.

This season, Courtois has clearly been the starting goalkeeper for Real Madrid and Lunin has got only a few starts in Copa del Rey games. But the Ukrainian continues to showcase his talents whenever he steps on the pitch.

Thus, the fact that these two players would be playing on the pitch at the same time made the UEFA Nations League tie between Belgium and Ukraine quite an interesting affair.

Ultimately, it was Lunin who got the better of Courtois, as the Belgian conceded three goals as he returned to his national team, while the Ukrainian conceded only 1 goal.

Both these goalkeepers played the full 90 minutes in this game and had quite similar statistics. Sofascore statistics show that Thibaut Courtois made 4 saves on the night, 2 of which came from shots taken from inside the box. He completed 27 of his 31 attempted passes in this game, recording an 87% success rate, but only 1 of his 5 attempted long balls was accurate.

On the other hand, Lunins made 3 saves and had 1 high claim. His overall passing success rate was lower than Courtois, as he completed only 20 of his 31 attempted passes, registering a 65% passing success rate. However, he attempted a whopping 18 balls in this game, 8 of which were accurate. The Ukrainian also made 2 clearances and won 1 aerial duel.

Thus, despite their similar performances between the sticks, Lunin got the better of Courtois in this game. However, the two teams are set to play again on Sunday, and it will once again be an interesting spectacle to see which of these Real Madrid goalkeepers turns out to be successful in that game.