Club Brugge goalkeeper Simon Mignolet claimed recently that Aston Villa refused to pay £6m to keep him in the Premier League.
There were two Belgian goalkeepers on the pitch when Real Madrid hosted Club Brugge in Tuesday’s Champions League clash at the Santiago Bernabau.
But while Thibaut Courtois conceded two of the most bizarre goals you’ll see all season long and failed to return after half time due to unspecified ‘stomach problems’, Simon Mignolet rolled back the years with a performance which has to rank amongst his all-time best.
Since walking away from life as Liverpool’s back up goalkeeper, Mignolet has been reborn back home. Brugge are unbeaten in 12 games with the veteran between the sticks and that remarkable trend continued even at the home of the La Liga leaders.
A Real Madrid fightback might have denied Brugge a famous win but without Mignolet, whose five saves included a remarkable reflex stop from Raphael Varane, one point might have been none for the unfancied visitors.
And with Mignolet flying through the air to tip Varane’s bullet header away from goal, seemingly defying the laws of physics in the process, it’s difficult not to look back and wonder why on earth Aston Villa refused to pay just £6 million to keep him in the Premier League this summer – particularly with neither Lovre Kalinic nor Orjan Nyland trusted by manager Dean Smith.
Speaking to Het Nieuwsblad recently, Mignolet claimed that Villa were indeed interested but they weren’t willing to match the Belgian giants’ bid of £6 million – despite spending over £100 million during an unprecedented recruitment drive.
Their loss, however, is certainly Brugge’s gain.
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