“He would have stayed” - Agent explains why Thibaut Courtois left Chelsea

Thibaut Courtois would have stayed at Chelsea if his family lived in London says his agent Christophe Henrotay.

The Belgian goalkeeper swapped west London for Madrid on Thursday evening in a move worth £35 million, ending his seven-year spell with Chelsea.

Courtois joined the European champions on a six-year deal, while Real midfielder Mateo Kovacic went in the opposite direction on loan.

However, according to Courtois' agent, the Belgium international would have stayed in London, but he wanted to move closer to his children who live with their mother in the Spanish capital.

"There has been a misunderstanding that he wanted to get a move for the wrong reasons, but he was pushing to go out of Chelsea because of his child," Henrotay told BBC's Sportsweek (via Sky Sports).

"If the family were in London it would have been totally different. He would have stayed, there is no reason to leave a club like Chelsea, he could have won trophies.

"Unfortunately his kids are living with the mother in Madrid."

Henrotay added that Chelsea understood the situation and were helpful in getting the deal done.

"He had the contract and it depended on Chelsea, but running close to the end of his contract, Chelsea had an interest to find a deal with Madrid, which they did.

"It is personal reasons so we have to respect this. Chelsea understood the situation and really helped to get the deal.

"They did a really quick and easy deal together, understanding the humanity of the situation. It is not doing something against their fans it is about getting the best of a situation that is not ideal."
The Blues were quick to replace Courtois when they signed Kepa Arrizabalaga from Athletic Bilbao for £71.6 million, breaking the world record fee for a goalkeeper less than a month after Liverpool set it when they signed Alisson for £56.2 million.

Real Madrid return to action against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday in the UEFA Super Cup final. Meanwhile Chelsea host London rivals Arsenal next Saturday.