The Belgium No 1 arrived in a £35million deal from Chelsea earlier this month but has now been benched in both of Real Madrid’s first two games of the La Liga season.
Instead Keylor Navas – who Courtois had been expected to replace as first choice at the Bernabeu – retained his place as Real earned a second successive win against Girona.
After going 1-0 down, penalties from Sergio Ramos and Karim Benzema reversed the game in Los Blancos’ favour before Gareth Bale got in on the act and Benzema added a second for an emphatic away win.
But with Courtois on the bench for the second straight match, Lopetegui has revealed that he could switch regularly between new man Courtois and Navas – who has been first choice at Real for the last three years in which time the Spanish heavyweights have won the Champions League three times and the league title once.
“It’s not a situation that’s easy to understand but it’s simple enough to explain,” Lopetegui told reporters afterwards.
“I’ve got some really good options in goal and there are no problems in that area. We’ll decide what’s best for each game. Keylor got the nod today and did very well. There’s great competition and that makes us stronger in the goalkeeping department. I’ve got some thoughts in my mind [about the goalkeeping situation], but I’m not going to share them. Over the course of the season, I’ll look for solutions to solve the next immediate challenge.”
Real Madrid’s win meant they keep pace with rivals Barcelona and sit above the Catalan club due to a superior goal difference.
Former Spain coach Lopetegui is tasked with helping the European champions bridge the gap to Barca after they finished 17 points ahead in the league last season on the way to the title.
And assessing their win over Girona – who famously beat the capital club 2-1 at the Estadio Montilivi last season – Lopetegui added: “The matches are complex and more so against good teams like Girona. They scored a goal and then they had the chance to score a second.
“But then the two penalties, we put them away and in the second half we clearly deserved the win.
“When it works, the goals have come in the form of Gareth, Karim or Sergio. The important thing is that they arrive, not who gets them. The team showed a collective spirit.
“In the first half we were in too much of a rush to attack, missing passes. When the score went in our favour we were much better.
“Girona pressed us in the first half and caused us some difficulties and we had to show good spirit to overcome that and get the three points.”
Courtois will hope to make his debut when Real face Leganes next time out this Saturday (7.45pm) or else he will be forced to wait until they face Athletic Bilbao after the international break on September 15.