Reports: Manchester United and Chelsea on red alert as Paulo Dybala's Juventus future remains uncertain
Premier League giants Manchester United and Chelsea are reportedly on red alert as speculation over Juventus star Paulo Dybala's long-term future grows.
Italian journalist Umberto Zapelloni has speculated over the long-term future of Dybala, hinting that the player's agent could be causing problems.
Paulo Dybala joined Juventus for €32 million from Palermo in 2015 and has since made over 100 appearances for the club. He has played a key role in Juventus' domestic dominance, helping the club win the double of Serie A and Coppa Italia in his first three seasons, as well as two more consecutive league titles, and two Supercoppa Italiana titles.
However, the Argentine's individual form has been inconsistent at Juventus and Dybala had fallen out of favour at the start of the 2019-20 season. His reduced playing time resulted in him being linked with a move to the Premier League.
Paulo Dybala had reportedly attracted serious interest from the likes of Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur in the 2019 summer transfer window. Ultimately, he decided to stay at Juventus and fight for his spot.
The 27-year-old went on to prove his worth, as he became one of Juventus' most important players. His performances won him the 2019-20 Most Valuable Player award in Serie A.
Dybala has struck an impressive partnership with Juventus talisman Cristiano Ronaldo, which led many to believe that his long-term future lay at Juventus.
He has, however, seemingly fallen out of favor with manager Andrea Pirlo, who has used him sparingly since the start of the season.
Paulo Dybala's lack of playing time at Juventus has alerted the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea
Pirlo's treatment of Paulo Dybala has caused a lot of speculation on his future with Juventus. There have been reports that Manchester United and Chelsea are keeping a close eye on the talented Argentine's situation in Turin.
Having seen Dybala left out of the starting line-up again for Juventus' Serie A game against Cagliari yesterday, Zapelloni believes his agent could be causing problems,
"At this point, Juventus must decide whether Paulo Dybala is the man for the future or not, it's a game of chess with his agent."
"I would always keep him in the team and would focus on him after Ronaldo, but with Pirlo, the feeling does not seem at its best."
Manchester United have been consistently linked with Paulo Dybala in recent years. The Red Devils are desperate to sign a left footed attacker, and Dybala's positional versatility would make him the ideal signing for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Chelsea, on the other hand, spent an entire summer strengthening their attack and signed the likes of Hakim Ziyech, Kai Havertz, and Timo Werner. Thanks to their wealth of attacking talent, the Blues have no immediate need to sign Dybala.
A move away from Juventus in January seems unlikely for Paulo Dybala. However, if he continues to be starved of regular playing time by Andrea Pirlo, Dybala may be forced to look at a move away from Turin next summer.