[Liverpool](https://walkon.com/) took down Real Madrid in the Champions League for a second year running, and the only reason why the final scoreline of 1-0 was even close at all was down to the continued heroics of Real Madrid star goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
Kopites will never forget Courtois’ spellbinding 2021/22 Champions League Final performance that bailed Real Madrid out, and while they saw shades of that again on Tuesday night, it wasn’t nearly enough for Real to win the game.
Nevertheless, Courtois’ display has naturally earned praise, and a reporter after the game actually went up to Liverpool superstar center back Virgil van Dijk in an effort to get the Dutchman to admit that the Belgian shot stopper is the best in the world.
But Van Dijk wasn’t having it, and he wisely deflected the praise for Courtois back to his own goalkeeper Alisson Becker, whose absence due to injury has been badly missed by Liverpool.
Van Dijk was asked, “Courtois was fantastic today. Is he the best goalkeeper you ever faced?”
To which he responded, “I think Alisson Becker is the best.”
The reporter tried to get cute and then said, “I mean yeah, but you don’t face him.”
Then Van Dijk retorted, “I did face him when he was at AS Roma.”
Mic. Drop. Whether or not you think Courtois is better than Alisson is irrelevant, because Van Dijk sure as heck isn’t going to say that or insinuate that. Big ups to him for handling this reporter with class and giving Alisson his own props, too.
Joe Soriano is the editor of _The Trivela Effect_ and a FanSided Hall of Famer who has covered world football since 2010. He’s led top digital communities like _The Real Champs_ (Real Madrid) and has run sites covering Tottenham, Liverpool, Juventus, and Schalke. He also helped manage _NFL Spin Zone_ and _Daily DDT,_ covering the NFL and pro wrestling.