Thibaut Courtois reckons he is all the better for a couple of dodgy moments recently - and proved it by keeping a vital clean sheet in the 1-0 win over QPR.
The hard-fought west London derby will not live in the memory, but the Chelsea keeper reckoned it was not only a pivotal win, but a self-reminder of how far he’s come.
Against Hull two games back, his attempted clearance fell straight to Abel Hernandez who levelled the scores before Loic Remy struck with a winner in a 3-2 scoreline.
Last week, Belgium’s World Cup keeper had to wipe a dollop of egg off his face as a 66-yard audacious hit from Stoke’s Charlie Adam sailed over his head to drag the opposition back into the game.
At Loftus Road, he denied Matt Phillips brilliantly in the second half, and insisted it was business as normal, despite taunts from the Rangers faithful.
“I heard you cannot catch a ball, you know,” he said. “Against Hull I tried to make the best solution and it was not the best control, but I showed that I’m mentally strong and I saved the team in the second half.
“(Against Stoke) If you want to play high as a team that includes the goalkeeper
“I never doubted myself, and that’s my strength, and I helped the team against QPR with some good saves, I think, and we won. I'm 22 and there are some moments when you are still learning.”
Cesc Fabregas hit the all-important goal in the 88th minute, ironically after an average clearance from Robert Green, recently restored to the England fold.
Maybe neutrals will feel Rs were hard done by, but that’s just the character of a side battling the odds, according to Courtois.
The win provided a seven-point cushion to Arsenal in second and all but shut the door on fleeting hopes, the north London rivals can mount an improbable smash-and-grab, bearing in mind Chelsea travel on April 26, after Blues face Manchester United at home on Saturday.
“If we had drawn against QPR, maybe Manchester City and Arsenal get hope,” Courtois said. “But they can see we are still on top and don’t drop points.
“OK, maybe it wasn’t the best football, but we got three points. With this win we have a seven-point lead going to Manchester United and hopefully with a bigger gap to the Arsenal game.
“Sometimes when you consider how a game goes and maybe you get a red card, then a point is a good point. Against QPR it would not have been a good point.”
