Maurizio Sarri explains why he considered selling Paulo Dybala to Man Utd

Maurizio Sarri explains why he considered selling Paulo Dybala to Man Utd and Tottenham when the English summer transfer window was still open.

That Paulo Dybala is talented is not a matter of opinion but a fact. However, he has failed to impress off late, especially after the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo who completely overshadowed the Argentine. It was since assumed that Dybala was surplus to requirements at Juventus and their manager Maurizio Sarri has somewhat confirmed this in a post-match interview by way of Juvefc.com.

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Sarri explained that he had to cut 6 players from his current squad to meet the UEFA’s Champions League squad quota. He tried to shift Dybala to Manchester United and Tottenham. However, several complications regarding salary and image rights meant both the English clubs decided to move on instead.

Maurizio Sarri explains why he considered selling Paulo Dybala to Man Utd

Speaking to reporters following Juve’s 2-1 defeat to Atletico, Sarri said:

“We have to cut six players from the current squad.”

“Sometimes, I get really astonished when I read your papers. You go on about Sarri’s choices, the choices of [Juventus sporting director Fabio] Paratici.

“Did you look at the Juventus squad? We have to cut six players to fit into the Champions League list and that puts me in a difficult position. The last 20 days of the market will be difficult for us. It’s an embarrassing situation, because we risk having to leave out players of a very high level.”

This list (by @AntonioCorsa) shows the current problem at Juventus regarding the squad size, something Sarri mentioned after the match.

There are 6 players that will be out of the UCL list if stay. You make the names, but I agree with Antonio’s pick. pic.twitter.com/1ze3hamXPQ

— Juve’s War (@JuventusWar) August 11, 2019

Dybala has the charecteristics to play as a false 9

However, Sarri was convinced that Dybala would do well under him.

“It’s a situation we have to resolve and it is not just about the decisions made by Coach or club.

“Dybala only had two training sessions with me, so all evaluations are premature. Clearly, he can’t be at the top of his condition physically. That also affects what he can do as a False 9.

“I think he has the characteristics to play in that role, but we’ll have to see how we can fill the penalty area with that solution.

“As I said before, I can talk to Dybala all I like, but the market goes in a certain direction and my opinion counts for zero. We have to cut six players, that’s all there is to it.”

“I’d love to keep them all, but our problem is that we don’t have players who grew up at this club. There’s only one, so our entire Champions League squad will be 22 players with three goalkeepers. That forces us to make decisions on the market that we don’t want to make.”

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