Why Juventus Would Be the Ideal Destination for Paulo Dybala

Paulo Dybala is likely leaving Palermo at the end of the season.  Dario Baccin, Palermo's sporting director, said in a Wednesday press conference that there is a "gentlemen's agreement" between the club and Dybala regarding his next move.

Dybala is attracting attention from everywhere.   reports the likes of Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and both Manchester clubs are looking into his signature.

His best destination, however, might be closer to where he is now.  To maximize his own potential and play in the competitions he wants to play in, a move to Juventus might be the best way to go.

Carlos Tevez and Alvaro Morata are growing into excellent strike partners.  One would think the Bianconeri are in great shape up front, but in the long term, the team will need to do some planning.  Real Madrid have the option to buy Morata back over the next two years.  Tevez has said he will return to boyhood club Boca Juniors after his Juve contract is up at the end of next season.

Real coach Carlo Ancelotti quieted some worries about Morata a week ago when he said he didn't see Los Blancos exercising their right of return.  But unless Tevez reverses course between now and next June, the team will have to come up with an alternative solution in the long term.

Dybala is the perfect candidate for such a long-term replacement.

Dybala is the latest in a long line of Argentinian strikers who make up for their lack of stature with massive amounts of technical skill.  It's obviously premature to compare him to the likes of Tevez, Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi, but his skill set is in the same ballpark.

Dybala would be the perfect replacement for Tevez.  Juve's No. 10 is a threat with the ball anywhere in the attacking third.  He is a threat on a long shot, he can break a defender down on the dribble in the box or out, and he can cleanly dispatch a poacher's goal.  As a free-kick taker, he can be just as lethal—as Roma learned on Monday.  Hanging around Andrea Pirlo has only honed that skill.

Equally as dangerous as a provider, Tevez is a great crosser who excels at hitting team-mates running through the channels.  Considering channel runs are a strength of Juve's absurdly good midfield and that Morata, Fernando Llorente, Paul Pogba and Arturo Vidal are all strong aerial players, those abilities make the team obscenely dangerous.

Dybala's game is essentially a carbon copy.  Anything Tevez can do, Dybala can do too.  Add the fact that he's only 21 years old, and you have the potential for a super-Tevez.  He is versatile enough to play as part of a pair, as a seconda punta, as a trequartista and even as an inverted winger—an interesting possibility considering the presumed arrival of Domenico Berardi this summer.

Of course, the only reason Tevez is a Juventus player right now is because his track record as a problem child depressed his transfer value, allowing Juve to snap him up for only €9 million.  Dybala has no character issues in his past and is eight years younger than Tevez was when he arrived in Turin.  He is almost certainly going to take a minimum of €30 million to sign.

Barcelona are in a better position financially to sign the youngster.  Dybala himself told Argentinian radio station Radio Belgrano earlier this week that he would "swim to Barcelona" if the Blaugrana called him, per Football Italia, but he should take a step back to see if that is the right decision.

If Dybala were to move to Barca, how much would he play?  Barcelona's top forward line consists of Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.  Throw in La Masia product Pedro, and there's not a lot of wiggle room to get playing time.

The same problem would present itself with Manchester City or Manchester United.  On the blue side of Manchester, it would be difficult to see Dybala and Aguero on the same pitch.  On the red side, his presence would inevitably clash with that of Wayne Rooney—and Robin van Persie will be around for at least one more season.

At Juventus, Dybala would be on the field far sooner.  He would be able to spell Tevez with little drop-off in quality, keeping both men fresh.  When Tevez moves back home, he will automatically become a major player in Juve's attack, whether as the fulcrum of an attacking pair or as an inverted winger opposite Berardi and sandwiching someone such as Morata or Simone Zaza.

Dybala will have his pick of options if he does chose to leave Palermo this summer.  It would be a tough ask for Juve from a money perspective and probably won't be feasible unless the team sells Pogba.  It would, however, be the ideal outcome for both sides of the equation.