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At nan opening of nan last training convention earlier their biggest crippled successful a decade, Atlético Madrid’s players lined up by nan centre circle astatine nan Metropolitano and waited for their coach to come. Diego Simeone arrived and ran done nan mediate of them, from Juan Musso and Jan Oblak astatine 1 extremity to Antoine Griezmann and Ademola Lookman astatine nan other. As he passed, caput down, they shouted and deed him – if not quite arsenic difficult arsenic they do erstwhile it’s a player’s turn. Gauntlet run, applause echoed information nan quiet stadium. Happy birthday, mister.
Simeone turned 56 connected Tuesday. He has spent almost 20 of those here: first arsenic nan skipper who won nan double, past nan coach who lifted Atlético’s next convention title, 18 years on, and now leads them into his 4th and their seventh European Cup semi-final, 9 years since nan last. What do you get nan man who has it all? “Buah! You can’t ideate really bully it is to beryllium successful nan 4 champion teams successful Europe,” he said after nan quarter-final; “I person nary day wish,” he said earlier this semi-final, “just axenic gratitude to beryllium capable to beryllium pinch my 3 sons connected my birthday, pinch my 2 daughters, my mum, my wife, my lifelong friends.”
One of nan sons was hidden successful nan crowd somewhere, hitting him. The time that Simeone bade farewell to nan Vicente Calderón arsenic a subordinate successful December 2004, he carried his youngest son, two-year-old Giuliano, successful his arms. The days earlier he came backmost to Madrid arsenic coach successful December 2011, he stopped successful a cafe successful Mar del Plata and, complete a croissant and a solid of milk, asked Giuliano, past eight, what he thought. “You’re going to coach [Radamel] Falcao?!” nan kid replied, excitement giving measurement to reality. “But … if it goes well, you won’t travel back.”
It did and he didn’t, but that was each right. Fourteen years later, Giuliano’s dada is still location – nary head successful Spanish history has lasted longer – and now truthful is he. Born successful Italy successful December 2002, Giuliano grew up successful Argentina pinch his elder brothers, Giovanni and Gianluca, but they visited often and their dada visited them too. They would eat “together” via an iPad connected matchday mornings. Football was their thing, of course, bound by a shared passion. Glasses would beryllium moved information nan array successful statement and they would find bits of insubstantial each complete nan house, Gio recalled: tactical scribblings their dada did.
During celebrations aft Atlético’s 2012 Europa League title, Simeone Sr was caught connected camera excitedly talking connected nan phone: “And did you spot Falcao’s goal?!” On nan different extremity was Giuliano. The nighttime Atlético won nan Copa del Rey successful 2013, it was a schoolhouse night, excessively late, but nan brothers went done nan accustomed regular astatine home, scarves draped astir nan room. When Atlético won nan derby successful January 2015, a mini ballboy successful a achromatic bib and agelong hairsbreadth came racing on nan touchline – thing he was going to beryllium very bully astatine – and leaped into nan coach’s arms. That was Giuliano too.
As a ballboy he was invariably by nan chair and, yes, location were times his dada told him to slow down a spot if they were winning. He would sojourn training astatine Cerro del Espino successful Majadahonda adjacent nan family location and person a kickabout. “It was crazy seeing nan players up close,” he has said. “I ever thought: ‘Imagine being retired there; that would beryllium mad.’” After Falcao, his idol became Antoine Griezmann.
Competition came person to home. “They would footwear me, propulsion maine to nan floor, and if I cried, I couldn’t play pinch them immoderate more; I learned to beryllium tougher,” Giuliano said of playing pinch his brothers. Gianluca and Gio were good, becoming professionals for illustration their dad, and they suspected Giuliano would beryllium bully too. Just possibly not this good. He was 16 erstwhile he near River Plate’s academy and crossed nan Atlantic to subordinate Atlético’s younker system, surviving pinch his dad, watching him pore complete formations each morning. When he turned 18, though, Simeone Sr kicked him out; it was clip to beryllium a man. Now, his dada is his head and his leader is his teammate.
Which mightiness make it sound easy, but it hasn’t been – successful portion precisely because it mightiness sound easy. In a caller question and reply pinch Jorge Valdano, Giuliano admitted: “At times, it tin consciousness unusual to me, wondering what others mightiness think.” When Valdano joked that nan champion point is, erstwhile your teammates speak severely of nan manager, speak moreover worse. The reply came backmost rapidly: “No doubt!” Giuliano admitted that had affected him erstwhile he was younger, telling Cadena Ser: “When I was 12 group said I was playing because I was my father’s son. I effort to isolate myself from [that]. I cognize I won’t beryllium talented anything.”
Quite nan opposite. Simeone Sr erstwhile said that location was nary measurement he would motion his boy because of nan baggage it would bring: nan suspicion, nan pressure. “I don’t want to opportunity never, but …” he said. “It would beryllium very difficult to person a boy successful nan dressing room. Very difficult for him, for nan relationship, for everyone.”
But he said that astir Gio not Giuliano, and Atlético didn’t sign nan second nor really scheme for begetter and boy to coincide. He was conscionable different kid from nan academy, trying to beryllium himself.
Having to do much to beryllium himself, successful fact. Loaned retired to Zaragoza first and Alavés next, Giuliano collapsed an ankle successful 2023. His dada instantly went to his bedside, but nan doubts astir wherever his profession went adjacent were not constricted to nan injury, which he overcame pinch nan determination that comes pinch nan name. There was, it appeared, a reluctance successful Simeone to unfastened a pathway for his son. Simeone Jr, though, would extremity up opening it himself, arsenic insistent and relentless arsenic his aged man was. Smashing down nan door, he made it intolerable for anyone to disregard him. Even his dad.
Giuliano utilized to beryllium a centre-forward but his grandfather – Simeone’s begetter – said nan helping would make him, and truthful it was: tearing up nan touchline, veins successful his caput astir to blow. “That Simeone, man … bloody hell”, Alavés’s then-coach, Luis García, said. “He runs for 90 minutes without stopping. He’s a pain. He’s sewage a very precocious level. He makes thing retired of thing astatine immoderate moment.”
“I spot a player, not a son,” Simeone says. However proud he has felt he has been highly observant not to talk effusively astir his boy moreover erstwhile he has done truthful for different players – earlier facing Barcelona he publically told Griezmann: “I emotion you” – aliases moreover admit him.
When Gianluca was astatine Rayo Majadahonda, who play location games astatine Atlético’s training ground, they would move up separately, beryllium separately and time off separately. “Giuliano has a bully narration pinch his teammates; that’s nan point I’m happiest astir successful our father-son journey,” Simeone said.
He would person to gain that, his spot too. When Giuliano came backmost from loan, he started 1 of nan opening 11 games. But erstwhile fixed a chance – fundamentally because nan coach had small different prime – he grabbed it and ne'er fto go, everything amended pinch him. No doubts now, conscionable a subordinate worthy each infinitesimal he gets and each infinitesimal he gives. And boy does he give.
Giuliano has a tattoo of nan day he made his Atlético debut. They are nan “team of my life”, he says and location tin beryllium nary uncertainty astir that either, a bequest from his father, thing other shared, bound together from nan beginning. Watch them and you spot it: nan aforesaid character, nan aforesaid competitiveness, connected either broadside of nan touchline. Go to nan nine shop, inquire for a No 20 garment and it comes pinch “Giuliano” connected nan back, not “Simeone”. But that’s his dad, Tuesday was his birthday, and he has everything he would wish for. “I’m not successful a position to inquire for perfectly anything, conscionable to beryllium grateful,” he said.
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