It was all agreed. Paolo Dybala had emptied out his locker and said some tearful goodbyes to his team-mates, leaving the training ground for the final time as his stint with AS Roma was seemingly over.
Multiple sources stated that the 30-year-old was set to sign a three-year contract with Al-Qadsiah, a lucrative deal that would see the Saudi Arabian outfit pay him €25 million ($27.61 million) per season over that period.
Yet just hours later, he would turn his back on that huge payday, taking to Instagram and delighting Giallorossi supporters as he said “thank you Roma… see you on Sunday!”
Fans gathered outside Dybala’s home to celebrate, while press reports on what led to the change of heart began to surface. Transfer expert Gianluca Di Marzio explained that the player’s wife and mother were against moving to Saudi Arabia.
Di Marzio added that the thought of leaving Argentina team-mates Edoardo Bove, Leandro Paredes and Matias Soulé behind at Roma also played a part in his decision.
“Everyone asks about the money.” Dybala said when Sky Italia asked him about walking away from potentially earning €75 million ($82.9 million). “But I put lots of things on the table like my family, my wife, the city, the team, wanting to get back into the national team.
“Obviously, you cannot say that you don’t think about it when you see that money, but there are many other things to consider and that is why I made the decision. I don’t know how the Saudi club took it, because I did not speak to them!”
The Bianconeri have won both of their outings thus far in convincing fashion, looking revitalised under new boss Thiago Motta. Even more impressive is that they have done so while leaving out the majority of their new signings, giving them time to adjust to life at the club.
That means there is much more to come as summer additions Douglas Luiz, Teun Koopmeiners, Flavio Conceição and others are ready to be added to the mix.
Dybala of course left the Turin giants when his contract expired in June 2022, the club opting to not offer the forward — who had made almost 300 appearances for Juve — a new deal.
He immediately signed for Roma where he has scored 34 goals in 79 games thus far. Should he feature on Sunday, it will mark the ninth time Dybala has faced Juve (four times for Palermo, four with Roma) and he has yet to find the back of the net despite playing 504 minutes of action.
He has chosen to stay in the Italian capital, but now Paolo Dybala must show that it was the right decision.
