It's important to start well - Courtois praises Real Madrid’s discipline after win over Marseille

Thibaut Courtois has stressed the importance of Real Madrid’s opening victory over Olympique Marseille at the Santiago Bernabéu, describing it as an important step toward a strong European campaign.

The Belgian goalkeeper reflected on Madrid’s performance, noting that lessons from last season, when defeats to Milan and Lille at home proved costly, served as motivation to start this campaign on the right foot.

“Winning these matches at home takes you a long way. We learned that last year when we lost here to Milan and also lost to Lille. It's important to start well and in the end we deserved to get the win,” Courtois said.

Real Madrid’s goals in the victory came from two penalties, but Courtois insisted the team’s attacking play merited more.

“We created a lot of openings and the goals came from two penalties. Our performance deserved more. We created a lot of danger to score goals from open play and not from penalties. In the end, the match got complicated,” he added.

Despite a dip in intensity after halftime, he remained pleased with the result,“The gaffer asked us to do the same after the break, but they pressed a bit less and closed down the lines. We were poor with the ball in the first 20 minutes of the second half and found the second half harder than the first. It's a good win to start with.”

Courtois also offered insight into Xabi Alonso’s tactical approach, particularly the collective defensive effort required from the entire squad.

“When you don't defend with eleven, the whole team. Xabi Alonso is very keen for the wingers, Mbappé or the attacking midfielders to get back quickly behind the ball, and that makes a big difference. That's the difference between whether they think you're dangerous or not. We've done pretty well so far, and that's the approach.”

He added that his own role has evolved under Alonso’s guidance, “The manager also asks me to play further forward, and that's what's changed compared to last year.”

With three points secured at the Bernabéu, Courtois believes Madrid are better equipped to avoid last year’s slip-ups and mount a serious challenge in Europe.

The blend of clinical attacking, improved defensive discipline, and Alonso’s tactical tweaks, he suggested, could be decisive in determining how far Los Blancos go this season.