Palermo striker Paulo Dybala has hinted he would prefer a move to Juventus, potentially ending the hopes of Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea to lure the Argentinian starlet away from Serie A.
Dybala is one of the hottest properties in Italy’s top flight, scoring 13 league goals so far, creating several more and hitting the woodwork several times for the Sicily-based side.
Amid reported interest from some of Europe’s top clubs, including PSG and Chelsea, Palermo owner and president Mauro Zamparini has slapped a EU€40m euro (Dh157.8m) price tag on the 21-year-old.
However Juventus are believed to have offered EU€32m during recent negotiations and Dybala admitted in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport on Wednesday his desire to play alongside Italian legend Andrea Pirlo.
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“I love Italy. This is the country that made me famous and I would love to stay in Serie A,” Dybala said.
“There are some big teams out there who don’t play in Champions League but I can’t deny that I’d love to play in Europe’s most prestigious competition.”
Dybala, who admitted he doesn’t “speak a word of English or French”, admitted playing alongside a “genius” like Pirlo would make his life at Juventus easier.
“It’s a lot easier for a striker when you have a playmaker like Pirlo behind you. He makes even the most difficult things look easy,” added the Argentinian.
“His genius was plain to see against Monaco in the Champions League. His pass eventually led to the penalty. Obviously Alvaro Morata played a role in it, but the move all started with Pirlo.”
In a report by Tuttosport last week Zamparini said that despite interest from Juventus and AS Roma, he is likely to sell to the highest bidder.
“We will sell Dybala by the end of April,” Zamparini told the Italian sports daily.
“In Italy Juventus and Roma are the teams most interested in the lad and he would certainly help them.
“But foreign clubs are also in the mix.”
The player’s agent, Pierpaolo Triulzi, is believed to have travelled to Paris as well as London recently to listen to offers.
“Triulzi has the green light from me and is going to Paris and London to listen to offers, then we’ll evaluate them together,” added Zamparini in the report.
“We will also meet with (Juventus general manager Giuseppe) Marotta again. Perhaps he will want to raise his offer.”
Palermo sit 11th in Serie A, 32 points behind leaders Juventus.
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