Giuliano Debate Intensifies as Atletico Faces Crucial Sociedad Trip

Simeone stands firm as Giuliano debate rages ahead of crucial Sociedad trip

Giuliano has not missed a minute of Atletico’s season so far. Every match, every squad list, his name is there.

Three starts in La Liga, another in the Champions League opener against Liverpool, and a lone outing from the bench in the 2-0 win over Malaga on August 19. For a young winger still carving out his place in the game, it is a sizeable role. For some Atletico supporters, it is too sizeable.

The criticism has been sharp. Accusations of favouritism have followed his regular inclusion, the family link with the coach fuelling the noise around every team sheet. Social media has circled in on the same question: is Giuliano playing on merit, or on his surname?

Diego Simeone has no interest in joining that conversation.

Pressed again this week on his son’s minutes, the Argentine gave short shrift to the online storm and refused to add oxygen to the debate. He drew a clear line: only performances matter. Nothing else.

“I have nothing to say. Giuliano's actions and work speak for themselves,” he said, brushing aside the controversy as Atletico prepared for Sunday’s trip to San Sebastian.

The reality is that Giuliano’s story is only one thread in a far more troubling tapestry for Atletico.

While the winger has quietly gone about his work, the team around him has stumbled. Atletico arrive at the weekend on the back of consecutive defeats, taken apart 3-0 by Athletic before being beaten at Liverpool. The aura of defensive steel that once defined Simeone’s reign has started to fray.

Eight goals conceded in five competitive games tell their own story. The back line, once the club’s great guarantee, now looks vulnerable. Every cross, every transition, every set piece feels like a test they might fail.

Now comes a trip to the Reale Arena, and with it a stern examination of character. Real Sociedad away is rarely a gentle assignment; in Atletico’s current state, it looks like a fault line in their season. Allow the wobble to continue, and it starts to resemble something far more serious.

Simeone’s options are not exactly overflowing either. Pablo Barrios is sidelined with a muscle injury, robbing the midfield of energy and legs. Alexander Sorloth remains out in attack, limiting the variety in the final third and stretching the coach’s ability to rotate.

The margin for error shrinks by the week. The league leaders are already edging away; another slip in San Sebastian and the gap to the summit grows into something that demands a response rather than just patience.

For Simeone, the calculation is blunt. He needs a result, he needs control, and he needs his team to look like Atletico again — compact, ruthless, hard to play against.

For Giuliano, the equation is just as clear. Every run, every touch, every sprint back toward his own goal is another argument that he belongs on the pitch, not just in the family photo.

An away win at the Reale Arena would not silence every critic or solve every structural issue. But it would steady the ship, restore some defensive authority and, at least for a week, shift the conversation from who plays to how Atletico fight their way back into the title race.