What can Paulo Dybala bring to Roma this season?

Roma have completed the signing of Paulo Dybala on a free transfer and he was given quite the welcoming ceremony in Rome.

We’ve looked into his stats from last season to find out what he could offer to Jose Mourinho’s Roma side. 

 

Roma last season 

Roma ultimately finished in sixth place with 63 points in total, one more point than they had managed in the previous season. 

Their biggest success was in Europe as they won the UEFA Europa Conference League against Feyenoord.  

Roma had the third highest xG per 90 in Serie A at 1.68, which was higher than the likes of Milan, Napoli and Juventus. 

Despite these promising numbers, they actually underperformed their xG by six goals last season which was the fourth biggest xG underperformance in the league. 

Despite finishing the season as their top goalscorer with 17 goals, Tammy Abraham was Roma’s biggest xG underperformer with a 4.3 goal underperformance.  

Defensively Roma were one of the strongest sides in Italy as they allowed an xG per 90 against them of just 1.01 goals. 

Overall, they conceded 43 goals which works out at 1.13 goals per game. 

They finished seven points off a Champions League spot and they will be hoping that Dybala can help to bridge that gap. 

 

Dybala last season 

Juventus had somewhat of an inconsistent season last time around, but Dybala’s quality still gleamed through. 

In all competitions, he finished as the club's top goalscorer with 15 goals and 10 of those came in the league. 

While it wasn’t his best goalscoring season, he actually overperformed his xG by 2.4 goals and for a second consecutive season, he took less than 100 shots. 

This was perhaps due to the structure of the side under Massimiliano Allegri. 

Last season Juventus ranked 10th for xG per 90 with 1.36 and they only took 13.7 shots on average each game. 

In a slightly more dynamic Roma side next season, Dybala may find that he gets more opportunities to shoot and get into goalscoring positions. 

As well as bringing a goal threat, Dybala also adds a wealth of creativity to this Roma side. 

Last season Dybala made 4.15 shot-creating actions per 90, which only Lorenzo Pellegrini managed to better from the Roma squad. 

The Argentine finished the season with five assists, but his creative numbers suggest this could have been much higher. 

Dybala made 38 key passes in 29 appearances for Juventus last time around.  

Throughout his time with Juventus, he made 293 appearances and scored 115 goals.  

Throughout that time he won 12 trophies, including five league titles. 

 

Where does Dybala fit in at Roma? 

Jose Mourinho deployed a few different formations last season, but he mostly switched between a 4-2-3-1 and 3-5-2 system.  

The 28-year-old is fairly versatile and can occupy any of the positions across the forward line, but he is probably best suited to the role on the right-hand side so that he can cut inside with his left foot. 

Last season nine of his 10 goals were scored with his left foot and if Roma accommodates him onto the right-hand side he could thrive in that position. 

If Dybala can build up some chemistry with Tammy Abraham, there’s every chance that they are one of the most formidable partnerships in Italy. 

The last time Dybala scored over 20 league goals was back in 2017/18 when he scored 22 goals. 

While he no longer looks to be an out-and-out goalscorer, he still possesses the skill-set to be one of the league's top players. 

If Jose Mourinho can settle Dybala into his new surroundings, he has the potential to be the signing of the summer.