Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois said that he did not mock England counterpart Jordan Pickford’s height after their World Cup group-stage match last week.
But the Chelsea man was keen to clear the air after it was reported he said Pickford was “too small” to be a top-level keeper.
England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford has been criticised in some quarters but was the penalty shoot-out hero for England against Colombia. Photo: AFP
“This thing about Jordan Pickford, I want to make it clear, I never mocked his height, he is a great goalkeeper. I want to make that clear,” the 26-year-old told the BBC.
Pickford, who is 1.85 metres tall, had been criticised for failing to save Adnan Januzaj’s winner when Belgium beat England 1-0 last Thursday top group G.
Thibaut Courtois is mobbed by Belgium supporters after the quarter-final win over Brazil. Photo: EPA
“I would never do that to another goalkeeper (criticise his height). I just meant that being 15 centimetres taller, I would have got the ball,” he added.
It had been suggested that finishing second in the group behind England would have given Belgium an easier passage through the knockout rounds, but Courtois insisted that never crossed the players’ minds.
“This team wants to win every game. Against England people said it was better to lose but we won the game, we have confidence in our team.”
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