Koen Casteels. — © BELGA
Koen Casteels (31) is the Belgian number 1. The goalkeeper was at the press conference and questions were of course asked about the absent Thibaut Courtois. That caused some irritation. As a strong character, Casteels solved it.
It was a striking moment at the press conference. Koen Casteels was again presented with the comparison with Thibaut Courtois. That as a young goalkeeper at RC Genk he was just as good or even better and that he is a goalkeeper in the same weight class. What does he think about that? Another question about Courtois. The keeper looked straight into the room and did not answer immediately. Press chief Stefan Van Loock next to him intervened. “The Courtois chapter is now closed. ” Casteels still answered in his own way. “Yes, what do you want me to say to that? Thank you.”
The absent goalkeeper is, by choice, a theme that will return often during this tournament. However, Koen Casteels is a man with character. If he would rather not answer a question, he won’t. Only at the beginning of the press conference did he go into it a little more deeply. “I don’t feel any extra pressure because I have to replace Thibaut Courtois. Everyone here wants to perform to the best of their ability. I have built my own career. I have nothing left to prove. It’s nice that the coach said before the tournament who will be number one, but I’m not going to do anything special.”
Whether he was still in contact with Courtois or does he not fear that every save will be compared to Courtois? That was difficult to ask because the Courtois chapter was closed.
Transfer to Saudi Arabia
We naturally also asked Casteels about his transfer to Al Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia. He chose that over Anderlecht, among other things. His transition was announced just before the trip to the European Championships. “I have had thirteen years in the Bundesliga. I worked hard there and now the time was right to move to Saudi Arabia. We visited the country and I was received very kindly by the people there. The international schools we saw there were impressive and top-flight football is also being developed there. Many European players have gone before me. Do I also take into account that human rights are sometimes violated in Saudi Arabia? I’ll go there and form an opinion about it. It is also difficult to say whether I would have signed for Anderlecht if they had become champions and played in the Champions League. That’s a lot of ‘ifs’.”
