Real Madrid star Thibaut Courtois has this week moved to assure that no hard feelings remain with Lamine Yamal following the high-profile recent fallout between the youngster and Xabi Alonso’s squad.
The Belgian also admitted, though, that Lamine’s pre-Clásico comments did fire he and his teammates up.
Wide-man Lamine of course dominated the headlines in the buildup to the season’s first meeting between Spanish football’s two biggest clubs.
This came owing to a round of pre-match comments, which saw the 18-year-old accuse Real Madrid of ‘stealing and complaining’.
After a 2-1 Blancos triumph in the Clásico, tensions then spilled over following the full-time whistle, as several Real stars made their feelings with Lamine crystal clear.
One such player was the aforementioned Thibaut Courtois, who was not shy in making a beeline for the Barcelona sensation amid a heated exchange with Dani Carvajal.
Speaking during an interview with COPE this week, shot-stopper Courtois was therefore asked about any ongoing fallout from the incident.
The former Chelsea man, however, assured as part of a lengthy response that he sees ‘no problem’ between he and Lamine:
“Lamine Yamal spoke in a certain way and lit a bit of a fire under the match, and of course the press took advantage of the topic. I saw that he was talking with Carvajal, and of course if you start saying something, I’ll say something too. But as I said before, we’re in an atmosphere of high tension and adrenaline, and sometimes you say things that weren’t necessary afterward.
“I think the Clásico is like that; sometimes we need this kind of vibe. Last season we lost four times, and I think we need a bit of this excitement again. Barcelona is a rival and we have to go face them; when they won, they didn’t respect us either.
“I don’t think there’s any problem with Lamine. This is something that happens on the field, and off the field there’s nothing. If I see Lamine in a restaurant tomorrow, I’ll greet him. I think there’s no problem between him and me, and these are football matters. But as I said, what he did was a kind of fuel. For us, it was useful to be motivated for the Clásico. The Clásico always motivates, but sometimes hearing things like that increases the motivation even more.”
Conor Laird – GSFN
