'Something snapped inside me' - Thibaut Courtois reveals real reason for Domenico Tedesco fallout after 'breach of trust' as Belgium & Real Madrid goalkeeper confirms he won't play at Euro 2024

In the absence of regular captain Kevin De Bruyne, Courtois anticipated wearing the captain's armband during Belgium's Euro 2024 qualifying game against Austria. However, Tedesco decided to give the armband to Romelu Lukaku, which reportedly upset the keeper and he decided to stage a walkout.

Notably, Tedesco intended to pass the armband to Courtois in the subsequent game against Estonia but the Real Madrid shot-stopper wanted to wear the armband on that particular match as it was set to be his first outing on home soil after he amassed 100 international caps. Courtois expected the manager to extend a tribute to him upon reaching the milestone, by handing over the captaincy, but that was not the case.

While speaking in an interview withSporza, Courtois said: "Look, if my departure was purely about the captaincy, I would have already resigned in March [when Tedesco chose De Bruyne as captain]. Kevin as captain? No problem. But then you had Romelu [Lukaku] and I as vice-captains without hierarchy.

"When he said that Romelu was captain against Austria and I was captain against Estonia on Tuesday, something snapped inside me. I couldn’t handle it anymore. The fact that I no longer felt appreciation from the federation and trainer made something explode within me. The coach made no effort to find a solution but simply said he would tell the press everything. He wanted to pressure me not to leave and threaten me.

“That is simply not possible, because it was a private conversation. Then there is a breach of trust between the player and the coach. Tedesco wanted to launch an attack on me, one he announced the day before. Go ahead, I thought - something like that doesn't help and creates a breach of trust. Moreover, things were leaked to the press the next day, which I know came from his side."

Courtois, who is currently nursing an ACL injury, also confirmed that he will not be available for selection for Euro 2024. "The door is definitely not closed for me," he said. "However, I know that I have to keep the focus on Real Madrid this season. And the European Championship does not figure in the plans for a perfect return. We'll see. Ultimately, nothing lasts forever in football. For me, it's no problem to sort things out like two adults. But where is the middle ground after a breach of trust like this?"

Courtois has kept 51 clean sheets in 102 appearances for Belgium and has conceded just 79 goals in more than 9000 minutes of action.

Courtois will continue with his recovery from the ACL injury that he picked up during a training session with Real Madrid in August. He is unlikely to return to action until the end of the season but will face an uphill task to earn his place back as Kepa Arrizabalaga and Andriy Lunin have been solid between the sticks for Los Blancos in his absence.