Thibaut Courtois is hoping to get a decent reception from Chelsea fans on his return to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night, but is prepared for whatever comes his way.
The goalkeeper spent four seasons with the Blues, winning two Premier League titles and an , before moving to the Spanish capital in 2018.
He has already taken on his former side with Real, in last season’s semi-finals, when Chelsea progressed 3-1 on aggregate, but both matches took place with no fans in attendance.
The Belgian stopper will be playing in front of his former fans in west on Wednesday night for the first time since leaving and is hoping for a warm reception, but will not be bothered if it is not.
‘I hope that they ( fans) don’t boo me but you never know,’ Courtois said, via ‘I’m prepared for whatever comes and we’ll have to see how it goes.
‘I hope it’s a happy return to Stamford Bridge. We’re now rivals. They’ll want to win and the same goes for me too and so I’m not expecting any applause from the fans.’
Courtois was in goal for both legs of last year’s semi-final, which finished 1-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu and 2-0 to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
The sides now meet in the quarter-finals this year, with the winners going on to face either Manchester City or Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals.
Chelsea come into the game after a shock 4-1 defeat to Brentford at the weekend, while Carlo Ancelotti’s side beat Celta Vigo 2-1 in La Liga.
The Italian is still a doubt to be present on Wednesday night as he awaits a negative Covid test, having returned positive tests over the weekend.
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