Thibaut Courtois has reassured fans he does not want to leave Chelsea. As the club prepare for their opening Premier League against West Ham tonight, Courtois is keen to end speculation he is looking for a move.

The Belgium international has been on Real Madrid’s wish-list, along with Manchester United’s David de Gea, for several seasons.

An interview he gave in Belgium in March, which he insists was mistranslated in this country, appeared to suggest he was considering a transfer and angered Chelsea supporters.

But Courtois told Standard Sport: “I am very happy at Chelsea and want to stay. I will try to show in every game that I am one of the best keepers in the world.

“I know that I didn’t have the best of seasons but there are things that I have said in Belgium which have been misconstrued in England. It unfortunately has given the supporters the wrong impression.

“It has put me and Chelsea in a bad light, that’s not good. I have never said I wanted to leave or anything. When it looks like I’m being put against the supporters, it’s not nice.

“Am I upset the fans have the wrong impression of me? Yes, of course. I don’t want them to think bad of me.

“In pre-season I showed the quality I have. People may have had doubts about me.

“But I think in the Euros for Belgium I showed I am one of the best and I want to continue showing that. My objective, together with the team, is to get back to winning the League and show that Chelsea are one of the best sides in the world.”

Standard Sport revealed in April new coach Antonio Conte was determined to keep Courtois as first choice and the club scared off Madrid by valuing him at £67million.

The 23-year-old is fully focused on helping Chelsea, who finished 10th last term, begin the campaign strongly.

Courtois was sent off in the opening match against Swansea 12 months ago, which Chelsea drew 2-2 and failed to recover from. After five matches they had only won once and their title challenge was in disarray.

He is fully aware of West Ham’s potential to inflict similar damage and added: “They are a really good team and I expect a lot of them this season. It is a very, very hard game to start with.

“It is very important we get off to a fast start to the League. After what happened last year, we need a good opening three-four games before the international break. We will then have something to build on and have some positive energy in the club.”

Summer signing N’Golo Kante will start but their other arrival, Michy Batshuayi, is expected to be on the bench.