Juventus: Paulo Dybala brings a special skill-set
Juventus can never take forward Paulo Dybala for granted.
It is remarkable to think that even as Paulo Dybala was named the MVP of Serie A for the 2019-2020 season, beating out the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Ciro Immobile, he was nearly left out of the Juventus starting lineup by Maurizio Sarri in a crucial match against Sampdoria.
Dybala is essential to Juve’s success. Players don’t win an MVP award in an entire league, despite not being one of the top scorers, if they are not vital to their club. The Argentine forward is the kind of player who makes everyone around him better and comes up with the goods in the most crucial of moments.
What makes Dybala so valuable to Juventus is the skill-set he has. Dybala can play at all three attacking spots, essentially playing equally well in any role. He’s mostly played through the middle, as Juve’s best starting XI generally has Cristiano Ronaldo on the left and Federico Bernardeschi on the right.
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The way Dybala has played this season has enabled Ronaldo to flourish as one of the absolute top scorers in European football. Now that’s familiar territory for Ronaldo, but he’s remained incredibly effective at the age of 34. And Dybala has played a major role in that success.
Recall that at Real Madrid, when Ronaldo was arguably the world’s best player, he benefited greatly from Karim Benzema’s dribbling skills, passing, vision, and well-rounded skill-set as the team’s No. 9.
Dybala has been that same player for Juventus. So in filling that Benzema role for the Bianconeri with Ronald on the left, it says a lot about the footballer Dybala is.
He’s the guy who can score wondergoals from thin air, conjuring up magic as he weaves through an entire defense. When Dybala curls shots from the edge of the box once he works that inch of space, you just know the ball is destined to nestle in the far corner. After all, the man has 17 goals in all competitions this season.
But Dybala is so much more than a player who graces highlight reels and brings joy to both fans of Juventus and even of other clubs. He’s also the guy who plays a more unselfish, hard-working role on and off the ball so that Ronaldo can be the one who doubles his goal-scoring tally.
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Dybala averaged 2.1 key passes per game, 2.0 dribbles per game, and 1.6 fouls drawn per game. Those are remarkable numbers for a No. 9 with 17 goal contributions in the Serie A campaign from 2,165 minutes of play. The supporting stats to his goals and assists offer a more complete picture of the skill-set Dybala brings to the table for Juventus. And it is a skill-set that was instrumental to the Old Lady of Turin completing nine straight Scudetti.