Should Dybala have listened to Conte and played for Italy instead?
Conte had given the then Palermo striker a call in order to convince him to align himself internationally with the four time world champions.
Dybala is a dual national and was at the time eligible to represent either Argentina or Italy at international level as he had then not represented either country in a competitive international fixture.
Dybala thanked Conte for the offer but declined as he had hoped to play for Argentina.
Now Dybala may not be included in the Argentina world cup squad that will travel to Russia.
He is reportedly not among the favourites of national team boss Jorge Sampaoli.
Sampailo said: “We thought Dybala was one of the best players of Argentina but we had some problems eventually. He is having a few issues to adapt to our style which is completely different from Juventus’. He is struggling to settle in well. Said that, I’ve always given him a call-up. That’s the first time I drop him. Let’s see if he will prove to be better than somebody else.”
Should Dybala have listened to Conte and played for Italy instead?
It is very likely that he would have been a regular starter at least had he done that.