'After the World Cup, a departure wasn't that obvious anymore': Thibaut Courtois explains controversial Chelsea exit following stand-off with Blues chief Marina Granovskaia Thibaut Courtois said he reached an agreement to leave Chelsea in March 2018 He said Granovskaia changed her mind when Blues could not find a replacement The Belgian admitted he sometimes feels like he is 'not appreciated enough' The Real Madrid keeper is trying to ignore negative comments on social media By Tom Caldon For Mailonline Published: 11:47 GMT, 2 February 2019 | Updated: 12:11 GMT, 2 February 2019 1 Viewcomments Thibaut Coutois has disclosed details the of tense discussions which allowed the goalkeeper to move from Chelsea to Real Madrid in the summer of 2018. The 26-year-old made 154 appearances for Chelsea between 2014 and 2018, winning two Premier League titles, one League Cup and one FA Cup before making a controversial move to the Bernabeu last August. In a candid interview with HLN the Belgian explains that he had difficulty negotiating his departure with Blues director Marina Granovskaia. Thibaut Coutois disclosed details of talks which allowed the keeper to move from Chelsea He said: 'That Marina is hard at negotiation is normal. The people in football who are talking about contracts, salaries, transfers, etc. that get players and dispose of them, they have the most difficult job. 'Only, in March Marina and I had a meeting in which I indicated that I wanted to leave. Living in London and the schedule of the Premier League made it impossible for me to regularly see my children, who lived in Madrid. '"Are you going to find something?" Marina asked me. 'Rest assured,' was my answer. "All right, then we'll let you go and we'll find a replacement."' The Belgian say there are times where he feels he is 'not appreciated enough' Courtois continued: 'What turned out? After the World Cup, a departure was suddenly not that obvious anymore. The possible replacements were too expensive. Sorry, that was not the appointment. Then you have to work hard for a moment.' The FIFA's Best Goalkeeper Award winner also shared his opinion of the criticism directed towards him after his return to Spain. 'There are times when I feel that I am not appreciated enough. What sometimes all appears on social media ... (sigh) but not just me, hey - today it is far too easy to point to keepers when one loses. ' When asked if he reads the comments posted about him on social media, Courtois said: 'No, not everything. But if someone writes something flagrant about me, I'll finally pick it up - through friends, or family. 'I've concede quite a few goals with Real Madrid, but whoever follows me well knows that I'm not playing a bad season. I'm not trying to get myself into it. I do not want to drive home every day and think: "He said this, he said that."' Courtois featured in Chelsea's FA Cup Final victory over Manchester United in May 2018 Read more: Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site dailymail and under his responsibility