Paulo Dybala’s Remains One of Serie A’s Shiniest Jewels As He Draws Closer to Legendary Argentine Duo

Claudio Ranieri was in full agreement with Jose Mourinho.

Ranieri was talking in his post-game press conference in the aftermath of a thorough 5-0 victory against Parma at the Stadio Olimpico when discussion turned to Paulo Dybala.

Dybala had been on the top of his game and scored twice while providing a gorgeous little assist to Artem Dovbyk. In what has been a frustrating season for the Argentine, this was one of his best performances of the season.

“I think like Mourinho: there is a big difference in Roma with and without Dybala,” said Ranieri. 

“I have already said it: when Paulo is good, he plays.”

Dybala has been the centre of speculation regarding his future in recent weeks. The 31-year-old has been linked with a move to Galatasaray, where he would potentially link up with former Serie A alumni Victor Osimhen, Mauro Icardi, Dries Mertens, Fernando Muslera and Lucas Torreira.

His brace against the Gialloblu only took the No10 to four goals in Serie A this season, but with it he surpassed Gonzalo Higuain to become the third-most prolific Argentine goalscorer in history with 127.

Dybala now only has legendary duo Hernan Crespo and Gabriel Batistuta ahead of him, with Crespo on 153 and Batigol way in front on 183. 

It’s a remarkable statistic for a player who isn’t a centre forward in the way Batistuta, Crespo or Higuain were, but it highlights just how good of a talent Dybala is, and can be, when on form.

It should be remembered just how brilliant a talent Dybala was during his early years at Juventus. He arrived in the wake of Carlos Tevez leaving, in many ways one Argentine replacing another, and the pressure was on the then-21-year-old to ease the goalscoring burden.

Nineteen goals in Serie A in his first season in Bianconeri colours was a very good return for a player who cost Juve €40m (£33m). 

As Juve romped to multiple consecutive league titles in the latter half of the 2010s — Dybala himself winning five —there was the expectation that Dybala would eventually turn into a world-class operator, yet it was always just out of reach.

The closest he came was arguably in his second season in Turin and the brilliant display against Barcelona in the first leg of the 2017 Champions League quarter-finals, when he scored twice in a 3-0 win. His two goals showcased his exquisite left-foot, while his deft backheel for Dani Alves in the build up to Higuain’s first in the semi-final against Monaco was a moment of sheer brilliance.

Aside from Higuain, no one was hit harder by the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo than Dybala. Shunted out wide in order to accommodate the Portuguese superstar, Dybala’s form dropped off a cliff in the 2018-19 season and never really recovered.

The Argentine performed best playing in a two up front, whether at Palermo or Juve, but Max Allegri’s departure was followed by the arrival of Maurizio Sarri, whose 4-3-3 system simply didn’t suit Dybala’s characteristics. 

Dybala suffered a serious bout of Covid in the initial stages of the pandemic, and in truth his physical condition has never recovered. Never a player to be considered as injury prone pre-2020, Dybala’s physical state could best be described as fragile, a player who’s missed an astonishing 85 games between club and country over the past four-and-a-half years through one ailment or another.

A body simply not cut out for the rigours of modern football.

Through a mixture of Ronaldo, injury and tactics, La Joya lost his sparkle, and never came close to matching his earlier output in the final few seasons at Juventus. It was no surprise that the club decided to cut him loose at the end of the 2021-22 campaign when his contract expired.

As Mourinho said in a press conference at the beginning of last season, Dybala was only at Roma due to his injury history. Still able to produce the goods when fit, bigger sides simply didn’t want to take a gamble on him as he edged towards his 30th birthday.

Now in his third campaign at Roma, Dybala is yet to play over 30 league games for the Giallorossi in a single season. Yet to play devil’s advocate, 96 appearances in all competitions in just under two-and-a-half years isn’t such a bad record. 

Watching Dybala in full flight is one of the real joys (pun intended) of Serie A. He is, in many ways, the last of a dying breed of player, one who treasures technique and moments of brilliance above running and fitting into tactical schemes at the expense of artistry. 

The nutmegs, drag-backs, backheels, twist and turns Dybala can execute on a dime are all things virtually being coached out of the game. 

Who could forget the moment during a Europa League game against Feyenoord earlier this year, when he controlled a long ball high from the sky with a first touch so good, so delicate, even Roma coach Daniele De Rossi was in awe on the touchline.

Looking back at his goals since arriving in Italy, Dybala has perhaps suffered a measure of under-appreciation, for the quality and quantity of his goals are superb. He was and is capable of scoring every kind of strike: free-kicks, curlers, tap-ins, volleys. A catalogue of goals as good as anyone’s.

With his career closer to the end than the start, Dybala’s moments of brilliance are more sporadic. Yet as he showed against Parma, when he’s on form, he makes Roma a much better and entertaining side. It would be a shame if he is to depart Serie A in January for Turkey.

And when Mourinho and Ranieri both agree on something, you know it’s true.