Diego Simeone: “Coaching My son, Giuliano? I’m His Father, But I’m Not Stupid.

“I always said that I never saw it as possible to coach a son. But, of course, I always said that thinking about Giovanni, who at the time was at Fiorentina, then went to Verona, scored 12 goals or 18 goals.

It’s one thing to go out and buy your son and bring him in, and another thing to have brought Giuliano when he was 16 or 17 years old, when he started playing in Atlético de Madrid’s academy, watching him grow, seeing that he had a great second season, then went to Alavés, suffered a significant injury, but he got back up and fought, and, obviously, managed to become an important player in the last 6 or 7 matches of the First Division playing with Alavés.

Suddenly, he gets called up to the Argentine National Team for a friendly before the Olympics, takes advantage of that opportunity, goes to the Olympics, and stands out. And you think, fine, I’m his father, but I’m not stupid, because he’s a footballer.

And since he’s a footballer and he’s with Atlético de Madrid, I want to win, and whether his name is Simeone or Pérez, it makes absolutely no difference to me. And the best part is, he knows that, because I’m not going to show any favoritism, have any consideration, or make any compromises from a paternal perspective. And I can assure you that from the moment we arrive at the training ground until the moment we leave, I don’t see him as my son for a single second.

Well, from there, he has a personality that is starting to show everything we imagined, and, well, hopefully he can keep growing. His teammates here at Atlético de Madrid are helping him a lot, as well as during his time with the national team, where he also made his debut. And, well, as I repeat, I’m his father, but I’m not stupid.”