Last year, Paulo Dybala was the key man, along with Cristiano Ronaldo, to save Juventus. Their 11 goals and 11 assists in Serie A (17 and 14 throughout the season) were essential to get the Scudetto, the only win of the complicated year with Sarri at the helm. His performance was exceptional and led Lega Serie A to award him the best player of the 19/20 championship award, an award based on Stats and Opta statistics, with objective criteria.
His last months, however, were anything but easy. After having overcome a very long quarantine for suffering covid-19 (55 days), the Argentine closed the course with a thigh injury that prevented him from playing in the Champions League clash with Lyon (he tried, and lasted only 13 minutes on the green) and that complicated the start of this season.
The Argentinian he's only started three times so far, adding a goal and 306 minutes in ten games. When he seemed to have overcome the physical problems, during the last break he appeared a gastrointestinal virus that prevented him from playing for Argentina. In addition, on Sunday morning, he felt strong pain in the Lazio-Juve warm-up, but he wanted to play the final stretch of the match at all costs. He did pretty badly and after the encounter it was discovered that he was suffering from a severe urinary tract infection That left him out of the selection again and continues to affect him these days.
To these difficulties, we must add the not simple situation that he lives in Juve. Pirlo's team, as is normal for a ‘rookie’ coach, is still in search of a tactical identity and it is not clear what role the Jewel will play. The player is wearing number ten, he is one of the captains and wishes to continue his adventure with the bianconeri, but his contract expires in 2022 and the club has not yet contacted his representative to renew. His agent, Jorge Antún, spent more than a month in Turin, between September and October, but he never spoke or met with the directors of the entity.
And Dybala, despite his 96 goals and 38 assists in six seasons, no longer feels at the center of the project. This Sunday he will be 27 years old, he still has a long career ahead of him: it's time to reflect. The solution to the case is Maurizio Zamparini, which took him to Europe in 2012 and spoke to ‘Tuttosport’ today: “Three years ago I gave him some advice, he should leave Juve. His football is fantasy, it is for Spain. Let him go to Real Madrid now, in January. It would be a great deal for everyone. “
According to the former president of Palermo, “It is a heresy that Paulo is not a starter at Juventus, he is a crack and, also, a very good person”. It seems difficult for the Vecchia Signora to resign one of its best men already in January, but if the negotiation to renew remains stalled, it will be inevitable to seek a new destination for Dybala in the coming months. With 27 years and only one year on his contract, many could listen to Zamparini's advice …