Jose Mourinho confirmed he spoke with Spain's captain over a possible move back to his home city if an agreement could be struck with Manchester City.
However, after the 30-year-old expressed some doubts over the deal, Mourinho claimed he stepped back and Rodri eventually completed his desired switch to Barcelona.
Back surgery mans he will not be available for Hansi Flick's defending LaLiga champions until mid-September and Courtois brushed off suggestions of it being a major blow for Mourinho's plans.
"Every player chooses where they want to be. If he didn't want to be with us, well, that's a shame for him. In the end, he's a great player, but he made his choice, and that's it."
Mourinho kicked off his return to LaLiga with a 2-1 win on the road at Espanyol and he's not expected to make any further signings in the summer transfer window after already signing Yan Diomande, Denzel Dumfries, Carlos Espi and Marc Cucurella.