Diego Simeone confirms controversial attacker will be in Atletico squad for Madrid derby

Julian Alvarez is going to feature in tomorrow’ Madrid derby – but we’re not sure for how long he will be used.

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Tomorrow sees the first Madrid derby of the season, and there’s a lot riding on it already. With Barcelona starting the season in red hot form, neither team can afford to drop many points in this early part of the campaign.

Both teams want to inject some momentum into their season with a win, and Atletico boss Diego Simeone spoke to the press about one storyline in particular that everyone will be following.

Atletico claim Alvarez set to return against Real Madrid

Julian Alvarez’s very public attempts to leave Atletico in the summer have made him a bit of an outcast, booed by fans whenever he’s appeared since. He missed their last two games entirely, but the club are determined to reintegrate him, and Simeone claims he will play some role tomorrow:

“He will be with us. We will decide whether he starts the match from the beginning or comes on in the second half,” he said.

It’s an admirable stance from the club and their manager. They refused to sell, and now they refuse to bend their stance because of an upset player. They’re going to keep using him whether he likes it or not.

How effective he will be is another question. But the only way to end the booing is to keep playing him until he does well and the fans lose their enthusiasm. Simeone is an admirably stubborn man, and we suspect he will succeed eventually.