Jose Mourinho has admitted that it is unlikely that Paulo Dybala will be able to play for Roma again in this calendar year.
Dybala was struck by a freak injury during Roma's win over Lecce on Sunday. As he scored the winning penalty, the Argentine appeared to pull up with a muscle problem, forcing him to be substituted immediately.
Physios were seen putting ice on his thigh as he looked to be in discomfort, even after being taken off by Mourinho. While Roma were able to hold on for the win, they may have to do without their star man until after this winter's World Cup in Qatar.
Mourinho revealed the extent of Dybala's injury following the clash at the Stadio Olimpico. And it is an update that could rule the attacker out of the showpiece tournament in the Middle East.
“I’ll say it’s not looking good, rather than say it’s looking bad. Unfortunately, it’s probably looking closer to bad than it is to not good. I am not a doctor and I have not talked with the doctor but, from experience and from what I’ve understood from speaking with Paulo, it’s difficult [to see him again before the end of the year],” the Roma boss said.
The World Cup gets underway on 20 November, but each country must name their final 26-man squad seven days before that. That puts Dybala in a race against time to return to fitness, especially considering the apparent severity of his injury.
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Ahead of Dybala's injury, he had been hailed as one of the signings of the summer. He scored six goals in 10 games for Roma before Sunday, earning the praise of German legend Rudi Voller.
“He’s one of the most important signings in Roma’s history. The fans were waiting for a big hit and he arrived. Magnificent. And he is fulfilling expectations, I hope he can continue like this and not have any physical problems," he told Corriere dello Sport.
“The ones that pushed Juventus to let him go. If Paulo is physically well, he can be devastating with that exceptional left foot. The victory against Inter was exciting for the fans and put the team back in a good position in the standings. They have a very good chance of at least making it to the Champions League spots.
“The beauty of Italian football is that right now there is no Bayern Munich that is superior to all the others, here there are five-six teams that can fight for the Scudetto. Roma must now aim for fourth place, then once they’ve stabilised and found their balance they’ll be able to think about even more important objectives.”
Roma's win on Sunday puts them fifth in the Serie A table, with six wins from their first nine games. But Mourinho was left unhappy that his side made such hard work of defeating a team that had been down to 10 men for much of the game.
“I don’t remember many games in my career with 11 against 10 where I wanted it to end as soon as possible. There was fatigue yes, physical and a little psychological too, as it’s tough playing Thursday and then Sunday,” Mourinho told DAZN.
“It’s true that we had the chances to score more, but also true that they could’ve equalised with a bit of luck. We didn’t play well today, but we won. Obviously, I’d prefer to have the points and a good performance, but for now the result will do.”
