Real Madrid star reveals he wanted to join Man Utd but 'dream' transfer was blocked by Sir Alex Ferguson

A boyhood Manchester United fan who wanted to join the ranks at Old Trafford was effectively blocked from joining Sir Alex Ferguson's side before completing a deal elsewhere.

Thibaut Courtois, who is widely regarded as one of the world's best goalkeepers, initially made a name for himself at Belgian Pro League side Genk before earning a £7.9 million move to Chelsea in 2011.

At the time, a number of clubs in Europe expressed an interest in signing the highly-rated Courtois, including Tottenham Hotspur – a club he name-dropped when discussing his time with Genk.

And as he opened up on his early career during a recent appearance on the Rio Presents podcast, the Belgian admitted that David de Gea effectively blocked a dream move to Old Trafford when he joined from Atletico Madrid in 2011.

"Yeah, I loved Edwin van der Sar and Casillas," the 32-year-old began. "So Casillas was because of his young age when he came into the goal at Madrid."

"I was just starting being a goalkeeper," he added. "It really blew my mind. Like, wow, he's playing for Real Madrid. And I always followed those games. And then I always followed Manchester United for Edwin.

"They signed David [De Gea], so that helped me shape my path in a different way. I was at Genk starting to do something decent."

He continued: "Obviously, there was some interest from Tottenham at that moment. There was some interest from Chelsea, some other teams from other countries. And obviously Chelsea at that moment had the best project for me on the long term.

"And basically because David (De Gea) was going to Manchester, it opened the door for me to go alone to Atletico. Basically, I think that transfer for me made me into the goalkeeper I am today."

Ferdinand then asked if Courtois was a fan of United, to which he replied: “Yeah, I was.”

Courtois during his Chelsea days. Image credit: Getty

The former United defender then compared Courtois to his Van der Sar; something the former Chelsea goalkeeper clearly appreciated. “That's nice to hear," he said. "I think in that way, I'm a calm goalkeeper that you will not see me shout.

“Like, if you made a mistake, you will know you made a mistake. It's better to focus on the set piece straight away.

“Put your people right and say to someone, maybe when it comes to your box, say, hey, don't do this anymore or try to do this. But to shout, sweep, like throw your hands in the air, I don't think it's that necessary.

“And a goalkeeper, a defender will feel more calm with you like that. But yeah, I watched a lot of Edwin growing up, so I was trying to learn with my eyes from him.”