Antonin Kinsky has emerged as the talk of the town after his error-strewn display for Tottenham Hotspur against Atletico Madrid.
The young goalkeeper made his UEFA Champions League debut at the Wanda Metropolitano as Igor Tudor opted to start him ahead of Guglielmo Vicario.
In what was supposed to be a landmark game for him, things quickly went downhill as he gifted two goals to the Atletico Madrid attackers and was substituted after just 17 minutes played.
Granted, Kinsky endured a torrid time and crumbled under the pressure in a big European away game.
But Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois claims Atletico’s pitch may have played a big role in his calamitous display.
Courtois may actually have a point
Kinsky’s first mistake of the night came in the opening exchanges when he slipped and gave the ball away to Antoine Griezmann, who teed up Marcos Llorente to finish from close range.
Moments later, Tottenham went two behind due to another slip, with Micky van de Ven the unfortunate victim this time around as Griezmann capitalised once again to double Atletico’s advantage.
Over the course of the game, a handful of players, both home and away, lost their footing several times, which is obviously a clear sign that the pitch was difficult to play on.
For Kinsky, though, lightning struck twice on the night as he lost his footing once again while attempting to pass the ball, leading to Julian Alvarez being clean through on goal with an open net in front of him.
The Czech goalkeeper was substituted moments later as Vicario came on for the rest of the game.
Courtois, who has played as an opposition player at the Metropolitano several times over the years, made a rather interesting claim last night after spearheading Real Madrid to a 3-0 win against Manchester City.
Read More: What the Tottenham players did to console Antonin Kinsky after his substitution vs Atletico
“I sent an Instagram DM to Tottenham’s goalkeeper Kinsky,” said Courtois, as relayed by Fabrizio Romano on X.
“What happened to him was tough, it’s hard mentally. Atletico’s pitch causes problems for every team”.
“I told Antonin Kinsky as I also made mistakes at Atlético and I made mistakes at Chelsea! I also got nutmegged twice by Messi.”
“I have told him that he has to learn from this. Life is hard, but he has to remain confident; that’s the way.
“The goalkeeper position is super vulnerable. When we make mistakes, it’ll end up in a goal. I ask Tottenham to support him and all his teammates as well.”
Funnily enough, Courtois and Real Madrid lost to Atletico Madrid by the same scoreline earlier this season.
And judging by the Belgian goalkeeper’s comments, he firmly believes the pitch at the Metropolitano is difficult to play on, as players continue to lose their footing unprovoked when it usually isn’t the case when they play elsewhere.
It’s difficult to dwell on such factors without tangible proof, but fans who follow La Liga and Atletico closely have been talking about this on social media, as mentioned above.
Obviously, there’s no indication of foul play from Atletico or anyone else involved. It is simply an observation that a handful of players have consistently lost their footing at the Metropolitano, which is emerging as a bit of a pattern now.
Schmeichel backs Kinsky after Tottenham nightmare
David de Gea sent a message of support to Kinsky immediately after his substitution as he walked straight down the tunnel with his hands on his face.
As mentioned above, Courtois also joined in on the act to support the 22-year-old, having experienced his fair share of highs and lows over the course of his decorated career so far.
Read More: ‘Stinker’ – Jamie O’Hara savages two Tottenham men after Atletico disaster
And now, another celebrated figure from the goalkeeping union has shared his thoughts, with Peter Schmeichel sending a heartfelt message to the Tottenham man.
“We’ve all been there. We’re all goalkeepers,” began Schmeichel on CBS Sports.
“As David De Gea said, it’s a different position from everywhere else. And if you make any mistake—well, more often than not, it is a goal. So the reality of goalkeeping is you are going to make mistakes, and it is gonna cost your team goals.
“The art of goalkeeping is how you react to that. He didn’t get a chance to react yesterday. But I’ll say to you directly: You did nothing wrong yesterday. You made a couple of mistakes, but as a human being, as a person, you did nothing wrong.
“And you were hung out to dry. I think that was incredibly wrong. If you ever want to have a chat, I’m here to talk with you—not patronizing you in any way.
“You probably have a team around you, but I’ve been there. I know what it’s like, and I can help if you want to have that help.”
Kinsky isn’t expected to feature again this season for Tottenham, but it goes without saying that he will look to come back stronger, especially after the outpouring of love and support he has received from the footballing fraternity.
And that’s exactly how it should be. The Tottenham fans will be with him throughout his journey, that’s for sure.
