Julián Álvarez ruled out of Atlético's trip to Real Sociedad

Atlético de Madrid face tonight's trip to Real Sociedad with a late blow that reshapes their entire attacking plan: Julián Álvarez has not travelled to San Sebastián due to a muscle overload. The Argentine forward, who had just regained his starting spot and played 90 minutes at Anfield, pulled out of Saturday's training session and medical tests ruled him out of the match at the Reale Arena. His absence comes on top of the already known setbacks for Pablo Barrios and Alexander Sorloth.

• Julián Álvarez is a late withdrawal with a muscle overload.
• He joins Pablo Barrios and Alexander Sorloth on the absentee list.
• Jonathan David is the only natural striker left in the squad.
• Atlético arrive after back-to-back defeats in Bilbao and Liverpool.
• Simeone needs three points to stay in the fight for LaLiga.

The muscle overload that rules Julián Álvarez out in San Sebastián

The club explained the situation with a short statement on social media: Julián felt discomfort during Saturday's final training session and had to leave early. After carrying out tests, the medical staff decided he was not fit to play at Anoeta and ruled him out of the travelling squad. It is a precautionary measure, but also a serious setback for a team losing its most decisive attacking player.

Jonathan David, the only striker left for Simeone

The combination of absences leaves Atlético with almost no room to manoeuvre up front. With Julián Álvarez out as a precaution and Sorloth still recovering, Diego Simeone can only count on Jonathan David as a genuine centre-forward. The Canadian will have to carry the goalscoring burden in a demanding match at a stadium that has historically been difficult for visiting sides. The attacking responsibility looks set to fall on him and the players arriving from deeper positions.

Two straight defeats and the need to react at Anoeta

Atlético arrive in San Sebastián needing to stop a negative run of two consecutive losses. They first fell at San Mamés on the previous LaLiga matchday and then suffered a defeat at Liverpool in European competition. Those back-to-back blows have raised alarm in the dressing room and leave the team with no option but to take maximum points to remain in contention near the top of the table.

Julián's return to the starting eleven lasts barely one match

The Argentine forward's case is especially frustrating for Simeone because he had just recovered his place in the starting lineup and now finds himself sidelined again. Julián had completed 90 minutes at Anfield and his form was approaching the level that made him a key reference in attack. That progress is now interrupted by a muscle issue that, while not serious, comes at the worst possible time for a coach in urgent need of attacking solutions.

Atlético's squad list for the match against Real Sociedad

Simeone has named a 23-man squad for the trip to San Sebastián. The list includes Musso, Vergas, Mendoza, Johnny, Koke, Han In, Baena, Lookman, Oblak, Marcos Llorente, Jonathan David, Arnau Ortiz, Hancko, Marc Pubill, Giuliano Simeone, Cuti Romero, Grimaldo, Hjulmand, Le Normand, Esquivel, Domínguez, Martínez and Castillo. Of all of them, only Jonathan David can be considered a natural number nine, which will force the coach to adjust his setup.

What is at stake for Atlético on their return to LaLiga

After the setback in Bilbao, the visit to Anoeta looks like a test of maturity for a side that cannot afford a third straight negative result if they want to keep looking upwards. Real Sociedad are never an easy opponent on home soil, but a victory would restore confidence and prevent the gap to the leaders from growing. In that context, losing Julián Álvarez right now makes the game an even bigger challenge.