Thibaut Courtois is desperate to return to Madrid but reports suggest Chelsea will not allow his proposed move to Real Madrid to go through.

The Belgian has his heart set on a transfer switch to Real and asked Chelsea after the World Cup to sanction the sale as he wants to return to Madrid to be closer to his family and experience a new challenge after four years at Stamford Bridge.

The Daily Express claim Chelsea have weighed up their options, and although the club were once open to the sale, Courtois will now not be departing.

Chelsea are not happy with Real’s offer, thought to be around £31million, considering Liverpool forked out £67m on Roma goalkeeper Alisson last month.

The Blues were also unable to secure a top class replacement for Courtois, having failed in an attempt to sign Alisson themselves.

Approaches for stoppers Kevin Trapp and Jan Oblak were turned down by their respective clubs, but the latest set-back was Everton’s refusal to consider an offer for England keeper Jordan Pickford.

The failed Pickford move means Chelsea believe they have exhausted their options in terms of a replacement for Courtois and the club will inform the stopper of their decision, with the 26-year-old now set to see out the final year of his contract.

Courtois is yet to link up with Chelsea for pre-season after being given extra time off for his World Cup exploits.

Chelsea kick off their Premier League season against Huddersfield, but the FA Cup holders will first take on Manchester City in the Community Shield on Sunday.