Paulo Dybala is the name on everyones lips in Turin right now, with the Argentine forwards proposed move to Manchester United, and then Tottenham Hotspur, having broken down.
He will now either remain at Juventus with limited opportunities or hope a non-English team comes in for him after Thursdays transfer deadline for Premier League clubs.
This tactical analysis scout report will look at what Paulo Dybala tactics could have added to United and why he could play an obvious role at Juventus based on Maurizio Sarris tactics at Napoli.
Paulo Dybala style of play
Paulo Dybala is well-known to everyone reading this.
He is one of the best forwards on the planet and a player who would add quality to every European club.
In his four seasons at Juventus, Dybala has won four Serie A titles, three Coppa Italia titles and reached the 2017 Champions League final.
On the way to that final, Dybala excelled against Barcelona in the quarter-finals when scoring twice in the home leg.
After scoring 19 goals and adding nine assists in his first season in Turin, Dybala scored eleven and assisted eight in his second before enjoying a spectacular 2017/18 season that saw him net 22 league goals while also making five assists.
After being the attacking fulcrum of the team for three seasons, the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo last season changed everything for Dybala.
The change was psychological to a point, with Ronaldo now obviously the main man and the player everything was based around.
Still, Dybala enjoyed a decent first half to the season when operating as a fluid 10 behind Ronaldo and Mario Mandžukić in a 4-3-1-2.
As the season went on, though, Massimiliano Allegri increasingly opted for a more functional team looking to utilise Ronaldo and Mandžukićs strength in the air.
This fact is reflected statistically, with Juventus averaging 20.92 crosses last season compared to 15.63 in 2017/18.
This type of attacking play hardly suits Dybala who found himself moved out to the right wing at times.
As Juventus attacking tactics shifted away from what suited Dybala, his performance levels and output dropped, culminating in only five league goals with five assists.
Now, lets look at what makes Dybala special and what he offers a team.
Dybala is a forward who can largely operate as a number 9, a number 10 and as a narrow wide-forward on the right.
He lives and thrives in the right-sided half-space and across the width of the pitch in the space between the opponents midfield and defence.


Dybalas understanding of space is also helpful when looking to build from the back.
When faced with opponents who pressed high, Allegri sometimes used Dybala as someone who could progress possession.
He would then drop into deeper positions to create an additional



![Inter Milan Vs Napoli [2–2] – Serie A 2025/2026: High Pressing, Defensive Gaps & A Costly Stalemate – Tactical Analysis 6 Inter Milan 2-2 Napoli - tactical analysis](https://totalfootballanalysis.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Inter-Milan-2-2-Napoli-tactical-analysis-1-350x250.png)


