Official: Courtois will not play in the Clásico

Belgian goalkeeper ruled out with flu; Lunin to start in his place.

Real Madrid confirmed at 16:30 local time that Thibaut Courtois will not travel to Barcelona for tonight's Clásico (21:00) due to a flu-like illness. The goalkeeper had been in contention until the final hours, but his condition did not improve enough to make the trip. Ukrainian academy goalkeeper Illia Voloshyn was added to the squad as cover, though Andriy Lunin is expected to start in goal. Courtois was already ruled out of the initial squad announcement this morning, but there had been hope he might recover in time.