Yes, Thibaut Courtois is out of tonight's El Clásico: Real Madrid announced on Sunday morning that their first-choice goalkeeper has a flu-like illness, and Andriy Lunin is set to start at Spotify Camp Nou (23:00 Riyadh, 21:00 in Barcelona). Spanish reports say the club will assess Courtois once more and has not fully closed the door, but as things stand Madrid face the unbeaten league leaders with a goalkeeper who has not played a competitive game since May. For the wider picture, read our full El Clásico preview and the Sunday matchday guide.
Real Madrid posted a four-word notice, "Courtois, baja de última hora" (Courtois, last-minute absence), on its official channels at 12:55 AST (09:55 GMT) on Sunday, linking to a club statement that blamed a flu-like illness. Within minutes "Courtois" and "Lunin" were among the top X trends worldwide and in the United States, with the Arabic spelling of Courtois also trending.
- The club's post had about 2.87 million views and 27,700 likes when we checked.
- X posts mentioning Courtois jumped from roughly 100 an hour overnight to more than 11,000 an hour after the announcement, over 27,000 in under two and a half hours.
- Checked at: 25 Oct 2026, 15:20 AST (12:20 GMT).
Key points
- Real Madrid officially ruled Thibaut Courtois out of the Clásico on Sunday morning with a flu-like illness.
- Andriy Lunin is expected to start; Real Madrid C goalkeeper Illia Voloshyn was called up as cover and Sergio Mestre is also in the squad.
- Lunin has not played a competitive match since a 2-0 win over Espanyol in May 2026, according to AS.
- Courtois had played every one of Madrid's 12 games this season, all 1,080 minutes, before falling ill.
- Barcelona lead LaLiga on 27 points from nine wins; Madrid are third on 21, so a home win would open a nine-point gap.
What happened with Courtois, and is he definitely out?
The official line
The club statement on realmadrid.com is short and clear: Courtois is a last-minute absence for matchday ten because of a flu-like illness, and Illia Voloshyn has been called up in his place. That came after Madrid had already named their squad on Saturday evening, which is why the news landed as a shock rather than a slow-building injury story. FC Barcelona's own live countdown logged the confirmation at 11:15 Barcelona time, and the travelling list it published shows three goalkeepers: Lunin, Mestre and Voloshyn. Courtois is not on it.
The timing matters. Courtois is 34, is in his ninth season at the club since arriving from Chelsea in 2018, and had been an ever-present under José Mourinho. He had made 45 saves and conceded 14 goals across 12 games in LaLiga and the Champions League, with clean sheets only against Málaga and Villarreal, according to figures from the club's official website reported by Goal. In the league alone he had conceded nine goals in nine games. Those are not spectacular numbers, but he had repeatedly bailed out a defence that gives up chances, most recently with several important saves in the 4-1 win over RB Leipzig.
The late twist
By early Sunday afternoon in Spain the story had moved. AS reported that Courtois's condition had improved and that the club would carry out one last check on him after lunch; Goal, citing The Athletic, said the goalkeeper himself was hopeful of flying to Barcelona separately. Marca described "confusion" at the training ground. Every one of those reports, though, describes a late return as unlikely rather than probable, and the official statement has not been changed. Our reading: plan for Lunin, and treat a Courtois appearance as a genuine surprise. The official line-ups are due about an hour before kickoff, and that is when the question will be settled.
Who is Andriy Lunin, and what is his Clásico record?
Lunin is no emergency stand-in. The Ukrainian has been at Madrid since 2018, the same summer as Courtois, and according to Goal he has made 43 LaLiga appearances over the past five seasons, almost all of them when the Belgian was unavailable. His biggest spell came in 2023-24, when Courtois tore a knee ligament before the season and Lunin ended up as the regular starter for much of the campaign, including a penalty shoot-out win at Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals.
Against Barcelona his record is better than many fans assume. AS counts four previous Clásico appearances for him: three wins and one defeat, with seven goals conceded and no clean sheet. The defeat is the one people remember, a 4-0 loss at the Bernabéu in October 2024 in which Robert Lewandowski scored twice and Raphinha and Lamine Yamal added the others. The obvious concern tonight is not ability but rhythm. Lunin has not played this season, and his last competitive outing was in May. Goalkeepers often say the hardest part of a cold start is not the shot-stopping but the timing of decisions: when to come for a cross, how high to stand behind a defence, how quickly to release the ball on the counter.
That last point is important for this particular game. Madrid under Mourinho have been comfortable sitting deep and breaking, and the goalkeeper's distribution is often the first pass of a counter-attack. Courtois has long been one of the calmest kickers in Europe. If Lunin's first few minutes are nervy, Barcelona's high press will sense it.
Key facts at a glance
| Fixture | Barcelona vs Real Madrid, LaLiga matchday 10 |
|---|---|
| Kickoff | Sun 25 Oct: 23:00 AST · 21:00 Barcelona · 20:00 GMT · 16:00 ET |
| Venue | Spotify Camp Nou, Barcelona |
| Courtois | Out (flu-like illness), per club statement; final check reported |
| Expected goalkeeper | Andriy Lunin (cover: Illia Voloshyn, Sergio Mestre) |
| Courtois this season | 12 games, 1,080 minutes, 14 conceded, 45 saves, 2 clean sheets |
| Lunin vs Barcelona | 4 Clásicos: 3 wins, 1 defeat, 7 conceded |
| Table | Barcelona 27 pts (1st), Real Madrid 21 pts (3rd) |
| Also missing | Madrid: Vinícius Júnior (four-match ban). Barcelona: Koundé, Eric García, Christensen, Olmo |
What we know
- Real Madrid's official statement rules Courtois out with a flu-like illness.
- Voloshyn was added to the squad; Lunin is the expected starter (AS, Goal).
- Vinícius Júnior is suspended, so Madrid lose two first-choice players for the same game.
What we don't know yet
- Whether Courtois passes a late check and travels separately, as some Spanish outlets suggest is possible.
- How long the illness keeps him out beyond tonight; the club has not given a timeline.
How it changes the Clásico
The stakes in the table
Barcelona have won all nine league games, scoring 39 goals and conceding nine, and a tenth straight win would give them the best opening run in the history of Spain's top flight, beating the nine-game start they currently share with Real Madrid's 1968-69 side. Madrid have won seven and lost two, away at Real Betis and Atlético Madrid. A Barcelona win tonight leaves Mourinho nine points behind after ten games; a Madrid win cuts the gap to three. Atlético Madrid, who sit between the two giants in the table, are the quiet beneficiaries of any draw.
Two absences, one problem
Losing Courtois on the same day as Vinícius, who is serving a four-match ban for his red card against Villarreal, removes two of Madrid's most decisive players at opposite ends of the pitch. Without Vinícius, Madrid's counter-attacks lose their main ball-carrier; without Courtois, the side that relies on defending deep loses the goalkeeper who makes that approach work. Barcelona are hardly at full strength either, with Jules Koundé, Eric García, Andreas Christensen and Dani Olmo all missing and a makeshift back line likely, but their attack has produced more than four goals a game in the league.
There is also a mental side. Barcelona have won six of the last seven meetings, the first seven Clásicos of Hansi Flick's time in charge, but they are coming off their first defeat of the season, 4-2 at Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday. Mourinho, meanwhile, arrives on a run of five Clásicos without defeat as a coach, according to Barcelona's own preview. A late goalkeeper change gives both dressing rooms a story to tell themselves: Barcelona that Madrid are weakened, Madrid that they have nothing to lose.
Why it matters
Late illnesses rarely decide title races, but this one lands on the one league game that can create a gap Madrid would struggle to close before winter. It also tests a squad decision Madrid made years ago: keeping a capable, experienced second goalkeeper instead of a cheaper backup. If Lunin delivers, that choice looks wise; if not, the questions will be about how a starting keeper goes from fully fit to ruled out within hours of the biggest game of the autumn. Remember that Europe's clocks went back on Sunday morning, so if you set a reminder earlier in the week it may be off by an hour; we explained why the clocks change and what it means in Saudi time, and you can check your local time with our kickoff time converter.
How we checked this
We started from Real Madrid's official statement and its post on X, then checked the squad list and the time of the announcement against FC Barcelona's official live countdown. Standings and season figures come from the LaLiga match centre and both clubs' previews. Lunin's appearance record and Courtois's minutes come from AS, and the reports of a final fitness check come from AS, Marca and Goal (which cited The Athletic). Trend data was read directly from X's trends lists and post counts at 15:20 AST. X's automated trend summaries were not used as a source for any fact.
FAQ
Why is Courtois not playing in El Clásico?
Real Madrid say he has a flu-like illness. The club announced it on Sunday morning, after the squad had already been named.
Who plays in goal for Real Madrid tonight?
Andriy Lunin is expected to start. Illia Voloshyn from Real Madrid C and Sergio Mestre are the other goalkeepers in the squad.
Could Courtois still play?
Spanish media report a final check after lunch on Sunday and say it is not completely ruled out, but they describe it as unlikely. The official statement still lists him as absent.
What time is Barcelona vs Real Madrid?
Sunday 25 October at 21:00 in Spain, which is 23:00 in Riyadh, 20:00 GMT and 16:00 ET.
What is Lunin's record against Barcelona?
Four Clásico appearances, three wins and one defeat, with seven goals conceded, according to AS.
Sources
- Real Madrid: Courtois, last-minute absence (25 Oct 2026)
- Real Madrid: Barcelona-Real Madrid, first Clásico of the season
- FC Barcelona: Countdown to the Clásico
- FC Barcelona: Preview, FC Barcelona v Real Madrid
- LaLiga match centre: FC Barcelona vs Real Madrid
- AS USA: Will Thibaut Courtois play for Real Madrid in El Clásico today?
- Goal: Courtois hopeful of a Clásico return
- Marca English: Courtois, last-minute absence for the Clásico
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