Thibaut Courtois has backed his Belgian team-mate Senne Lammens after the latest goalkeeper’s error knocked the Red Devils out of the World Cup.
Lammens deflected a long-range effort from Pau Cubarsi in the 88th minute, allowing Mikel Merino to net the winner and send Spain into the semi-finals.
The Manchester United goalkeeper looked frustrated after the final whistle, but Cotois insisted the mistake would not define his career.
“Senne, yes I hugged him a lot, there’s a lot I can’t do,” said Courtois after the match.
“For the goalkeeper it’s like **I feel it.
“He is a good goalkeeper and he will be strong in this, so it’s not a problem, in the end you can’t say much to him, a lot of advice.
“He is a strong person, he has a strong personality and I am sure he will be fine.
“He will have holidays, he will regroup, go to Manchester and have a good season – I have no doubts about that.”
Lammens entered the game in the 71st minute after replacing Courtois, who was forced off with a hamstring problem.
Courtois disagreed with the decision to switch
The Real Madrid goalkeeper said that he wants to continue even though he was upset in the second half.
Courtois initially struggled with the issue following a long kick after a while but believes he is capable of finishing the match.
“Yes, it was with a long kick at the beginning of the second half that I felt something near the muscle, then I saved, I felt good so I thought OK we will continue, then I kicked and I felt a little bit,” he said.
“Obviously I wanted to continue but the coach wanted someone who is 100%, that’s right, it’s his decision.
“I wanted to wait another five, 10 minutes to see because in goal, I was feeling good, I was saving.
“That’s the coach’s decision, and that’s not the problem.”
The future of Belgium remains uncertain
With Belgium’s World Cup campaign now over, Courtois has admitted he will hold talks on his international future before deciding whether to move on.
The 34-year-old has suggested that he may step aside from his Nations League duties to take charge of his career before returning to major tournament qualifiers.
“In the end, it’s something we have to discuss with the coach and Vincent Mannaert,” said Courtois.
“It would be good to take a year off from the Nations – to get some breathing room from a busy schedule – and then come back to the qualifiers and the Euros.
“But in the end that is the decision of the coach and the federation.
“If they don’t see it like that, I will have to think about whether I will continue to come back or not.
“Maybe I’m leaning more towards moving on than stopping, but we’ll see.
“Finally, it’s something we have to discuss with Vincent and the coach.
“We will see what their opinion is, and then we will make a decision.”
