Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois says he is looking forward to facing Spain in an official match for the first time as the two nations prepare to meet in the World Cup quarter-finals.
The Real Madrid shot-stopper spoke to the media ahead of the clash, acknowledging Spain’s impressive form while outlining what Belgium must do to pull off an upset.
For Courtois, the occasion carries extra significance given his familiarity with many of Spain’s players through club football.
“It’s a special match. I’ve
played against them in a few friendlies, but facing them for the first time in an official match is going to be great.”
Courtois also praised Spain’s style of play, describing Luis de la Fuente’s side as one of the tournament favorites while stressing that Belgium must remain disciplined throughout the contest.
“They are playing well, managing the game’s tempo as they should. Our job is to try to score a goal and then hold on. We know that if we want to win, we have to be focused for a hundred minutes or more. In the end, people have also been a bit wrong about us. We already saw what Egypt was capable of against Argentina, who for me are one of the favorites along with Spain, France, and England. Spain is sticking to their possession game. They also press after losing the ball; we have to find space behind their defense, which they leave open, and play our own game, which is different from theirs.”
The Belgian goalkeeper was also asked about Spain’s attacking threats, singling out Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal while also complimenting new Real Madrid teammate Marc Cucurella.
Although Belgium plan to pay particular attention to Yamal, Courtois made it clear that Spain’s quality extends well beyond the teenage star.
“Cucurella is defensively solid. Lamine Yamal is a star, we’ll double-team him, but he’s a great player, and it’s not just him. The coach hasn’t told us what the plan is yet, but we can’t focus solely on Lamine. We’ve already worked a bit on attack, and we’ll watch some video footage to learn how to defend against them.”
Courtois and Belgium will now attempt to book their place in the World Cup semi-finals by overcoming one of the tournament favorites in a highly anticipated quarter-final showdown against Spain.
