Argentina will have their title defense at stake when they take on Ecuador in the 2024 Copa America quarterfinals, which is why it may be surprising not to see Paulo Dybala on the defending champs’ squad.
The AS Roma star was part of the roster that helped the country win the World Cup at Qatar 2022, so his absence it’s surprising, to say the least. Dybala is healthy, but he’s not playing in this year’s Copa America for Argentina because coach Lionel Scaloni decided not to call him up.
“Not just him. When you leave a player out, especially in the conditions we had to do, it is always difficult. We have a special affection for him but we always say that the team comes first,” Scaloni said about leaving Dybala out. “Given the circumstances in the positions, especially in which we had some problems. We know what he gave us. There are decisions and we left Dybala out with all the pain in the world.”
Scaloni, who had already snubbed Dybala in the Copa America Argentina won in 2021, did include the former Juventus star in the 2022 World Cup squad. But he felt there wasn’t enough room for Paulo this time.
Instead of getting Dybala on the plane to the US, Scaloni opted to take more wingers (Nicolas Gonzalez, Valentin Carboni, Alejandro Garnacho), central midfielders (Giovani Lo Celso, Guido Rodriguez, Exequiel Palacios) and defenders (Lucas Martinez Quarta, German Pezzella).
Dybala has yet to impress with Argentina
Even though he made a name for himself in Europe by shining in the Italian Serie A, Dybala never stood out on the international stage. While he never got much playing time, Paulo failed to impress when he did get the chance to suit up.
Strange as it may sound, Dybala’s style of play has made it difficult for him to coexist with Lionel Messi on the field, as both of them operate as attacking midfielders. But even with Leo out, Dybala couldn’t get to earn a spot on the team.
When Messi is not playing, Scaloni often prefers to deploy a 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 formation without a playmaker. This explains why Dybala doesn’t have much room on the Argentine national team, even if his talent is unquestionable.