Courtois kept his second clean sheet of the season. The Belgian goalkeeper spoke to Realmadrid TV about his feelings after the team’s victory at the Carlos Tartiere stadium: “It’s a very important victory. Winning away from home with a clean sheet is important. The level we were at, the reactions, the pressure, they were very good until the final whistle. We knew it was a tough match, it’s the first one against Oviedo in the Primera for 24 years.”
“It’s a Primera División stadium, a Primera División team and I loved playing here. We knew it was going to be tough, they did well at the start, but then we bounced back and created a lot of danger. Their goalkeeper did a great job to keep the game very even until the end.”
What did the team do well?
“In attack, we could have finished the game off earlier. At 0-1 you know that they can always have moments, like the one that hit the post. All 11 of us defended very well, we pressed well and that’s how we’re going to win a lot of games. In attack, at the end we had 10 shots on goal and three goals, so it’s important.”
What did Xabi Alonso ask of them?
“He asked us to start well from the beginning, with a lot of pressing high up the pitch and alertness. If you’re pressing high up, they have no way of getting out and can only hit the long ball, and that’s where I am or a defender is to get the ball back quickly to attack again. It’s very difficult for the other team to get out of that pressure; that’s what we tried and it worked quite well. They might come out of the pressure and counter-attack, that’s why it’s important that all the players go back. That’s what we did today, also against Osasuna, and that’s the path we have to follow.”
Feeling on a personal level
“I feel good. In the end, against Osasuna I didn’t have much work to do. The coach is asking me to play much more forward, so I’m running a lot. I’m accompanying the team because when they press high up the pitch I have to stay there; I’m often in the middle of the pitch. It’s about staying focused, like that save at the end, and keeping a clean sheet. The match was about keeping a clean sheet for everyone and in the end winning 0-3 is better than 1-2 and enduring the last few minutes.”
The fans in Oviedo
“They’re great. We haven’t been here to play for a long time and it means a lot to them, they’re great fans, a great ground to play in the Primera División and there are also a lot of people who love Madrid. In the hotel there was a little boy wearing my shirt who stood out and even though we were in a hurry for lunch I approached him and his father to sign the shirt. They both started crying and at the end of the day that’s very nice. It’s the little things that we can have. It didn’t hurt me to go there and sign it for him because I saw that he had my shirt. In the end, you bring some joy to their lives for both of them. That makes me happy.”
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