Thibaut Courtois shows off his new Champions League final-inspired tattoo
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has got a new tattoo which draws inspiration from his heroics in the Champions League final win over Liverpool in Paris last month.
The Belgian shot-stopper proved impervious between the sticks as Carlo Ancelotti’s men secured a 1-0 win over the Reds in a delicately-poised Parisian showpiece, claiming the Man of the Match award for his acrobatic efforts in goal.
Vinicius Junior ultimately scored the goal that determined the match, but it was Courtois who stole the headlines and dominated the following day’s back pages as he kept a lid on Jurgen Klopp’s usually lethal attacking line.
The towering gloveman made nine saves, the most ever recorded by a goalkeeper in a Champions League final, as he left Mohamed Salah visually frustrated after keeping his clean sheet intact for 90 minutes — joining Oliver Kahn and Edwin van der Sar as one of only three shot-stoppers to scoop a UCL final MOTM award.
In homage to his own efforts, Courtois has now inked up with a fitting reference to his performance, getting a brick wall guarding a net tattooed on his forearm, with his initials, squad number (‘TC1’) and the Champions League trophy sitting in front of it.
Courtois captioned his gratitude to the tattoo artist, Larissa, who replied: “For the ONE and only Champ! Thank you for giving me the opportunity to place this beautiful memo.”
The tattoo also comes after Courtois hit out at his treatment in the Premier League, suggesting he never received the respect he deserved when playing in goal for Chelsea, a point he was quick to emphasis following Real’s win over Liverpool.
After the final last month, he told BT Sport: “I saw a lot of tweets coming my way, saying that I will get humbled today but it was the other way around.
“I needed to win this final to put respect on my name. Because I don’t get enough respect, especially in England.
“Yesterday I said when Madrid plays finals they win it and I’m on the good side of history. I’m really proud of the performance of the team.
“We beat the best clubs in the world together with us. City and Liverpool were unbelievable this season. Today they were really strong.
“Liverpool won two cups, today they were really strong, I think I played a great game and that was the difference – we had one chance and we scored it.”
