Real Madrid currently have five goalkeepers on the roster and only having the ability to take three what is Julen Lopetegui’s plan?
The move of Thibaut Courtois to Real Madrid has been completed, which opens up a whole new dilemma for manager Julen Lopetegui, who gets the number one spot and who will remain on the roster. After Courtois forced a move out of Stamford Bridge for family reasons, it gave Lopetegui so many things to think about. Los Blancos currently have five goalkeepers, Keylor Navas the number one choice currently, Courtois recently acquired, Kiko Casilla who is rumoured to be heading out, Andriy Lunin an interesting new young signing with tons of potential, and Luca Zidane. There is only room for three goalkeepers so let’s break down the best situation for Lopetegui.
There is only two situations that are really possible the first would be selling Kiko, then loaning one of the younger keepers Lunin or Luca, and having Navas and Courtois anchor the back line. Obviously, in this situation, you have Courtois and Navas switching up until you see one of them earn the spot outright, and then have Lunin or Luca as a third option. Lunin seems to be the more talented keeper after watching him in the preseason, but at the same time he is young and you want to see him develop more so I think he would end up on loan.
The next situation is selling Navas, this would mean that Lunin or Luca would go out on loan, and Kiko Casilla would back up the new guy Courtois. In this situation, I think it makes Madrid look bad as a club to just drop Navas a player who has given his everything to the club and won them many trophies. Starts to remind you of the Iker Casillas situation. Kiko Casilla, on the other hand, doesn’t give you the same confidence of having two world-class goalies fight for the starting spot. Especially when those two goalkeepers are at the level Courtois and Navas are at.
The decision I think has already made itself with rumors of Kiko Casilla’s exit, and Keylor Navas being quoted saying “ I would rather die than leave Madrid”. The next choice is to figure out what he is going to do with his third-string goalkeepers. Does he loan out Luca? Does he loan out Lunin? Does he sell Luca and let Lunin remain the third choice and get no real minutes? This is a problem coach say they love having but at the same time, it is a difficult situation. You do not want to stunt the development of a potentially great young player, but also you do not want to make him seem unwanted. I think Lopetegui will make the right decision and make sure Lunin is getting enough time to develop even if that means going on loan.
Matchday Decision
The real headache that Lopetegui is going to be facing is on game day is, who is going to have the number one spot? Let’s break down the season stat averages from the two goalkeepers and their respective leagues from last year.
Keylor Navas appeared in 25 league games after recovering from an injury early in the season, in those 25 games he averaged 1.16 goals conceded, 2.64 saves per game, and a 2.36 save per goal average, as well as 6 clean sheets on the year.
Thibaut Courtois made 35 league appearances, in those 35 games he averaged 0.89 goals conceded, 1.74 saves per game, 2.10 saves per goal, and topped it off with 15 clean sheets.
Now just looking at those numbers you can see that Keylor Navas faced a lot more shots than Courtois, but Courtois did a much better job of keeping his goal clean. Keylor Navas not only faced more shots but was more susceptible to set pieces as well, which has always been a weak spot for Madrid. Thibaut Courtois is a menace in the air and on set pieces where he only gave up nine goals total last season (including penalties). Keylor playing fewer matches still gave up more goals off of set pieces, 11 goals to be exact.
As a shot-stopper, Keylor was much stronger in open play only giving up 16 goals in open play, compared to Courtois’ 22 given up in open play. Navas’ quickness and reactions are much stronger than Courtois most likely due to the size difference. The other argument is that Keylor can perform on the big stage and doesn’t get blinded by the light, after winning three Champions League’s, one Spanish league, four FIFA Club World Cups, and three UEFA Supercups. Compared to Courtois’s to two league titles, one FA Cup title, and one English league cup title. Courtois did see some trophies with his time with Atletico but not to the same extent as his time with Chelsea or Navas’s time with Madrid.
Conclusion
Both goalkeepers have strengths where the other is lacking certain qualities, but Lopetegui has his hands full when it comes to making the right decision between the sticks. Keylor Navas, for now, is still the Madrid number one and the only thing that is going to change that is when he loses the faith of the fans and the staff. That being said any little mistake could end up making this Courtois’s team but after all the winning, big saves and trophies Navas has won for the club it would be disrespectful to take his spot for anything besides a considerable dip in performance.