Courtois injury forces Real Madrid to rely on backup Lunin for crucial matches

Real Madrid again finds itself in the same, awkward scenario: without Thibaut Courtois. During Sunday's 1-1 draw against Atlético de Madrid in LaLiga, the Belgian goalkeeper pulled an adductor muscle in his left leg. The match at the Metropolitano Stadium was filled with incidents, including the stoppage of play due to the chaos in the stands when Atlético fans were throwing objects in his direction at Courtois.

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Now, Real Madrid have to learn to live without its most important goalkeeper, opening a range of questions about how Courtois' absence will affect the performance of the team in the forthcoming games, especially now that Andriy Lunin is starting to defend the goal for Los Blancos.

A giant facing another obstacle

Thibaut Courtois is an influential performer for Real Madrid. The Belgian goalkeeper has, since his signing, been regarded as one of the best in the world. He's come up with saves at critical moments and won games that almost seemed unlikely. When he is in goal, the backline is solid, but his absence-as seen this season-is always cause for alarm.

Not only the seriousness but also the fact that Courtois has had a history of setbacks recently makes his new injury-alarmingly announced on Monday-something very serious. He tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last season, which kept him out for such a long period, and when he was almost ready to return to the field, he ripped the meniscus in his right knee.

Now, with this new adductor problem, Courtois is set to be unavailable until after the FIFA international break in October. With big games coming, including the Champions League clash against Lille and even the LaLiga clash against Villarreal, Real Madrid will need to count on Ukrainian goalkeeper Lunin to hold the fort.

Lunin's return to action

Andriy Lunin will bear the responsibility in Courtois' absence. With Courtois off due to injury, the Ukrainian young goalkeeper enjoyed a few opportunities last season.

Now, with another gilt-edged opportunity, it is time for Lunin to prove he can be much more than just Courtois' back-up. The next challenge is the Champions League visit to Lille, which is going to be a real test for the young goalkeeper if he wants to avoid Courtois' absence being felt too strongly by Real Madrid.