Paulo Dybala isn't going to the Olympics now, so what are Argentina doing?
Paulo Dybala was a favorite to be the breakout star of Copa America Centenario, going to from superstar in Italy to a global phenomenon. But Argentina left him off of their team, presumably so he could play for them at the Olympics.
One problem: Juventus aren't releasing him for the Olympics.
"I regret not having been called up for the Copa America because I already knew the club would not release me for Rio," Dybala told DirecTV on Thursday.
"I wanted to be in the United States [for Copa America], but you have to respect the coach's decision."
Dybala scored 23 goals in his first season with Juventus, establishing himself as one of Serie A's best forwards. While he wouldn't have passed up Lionel Messi or Sergio Aguero in Argentina's starting lineup, he figured to be a key player off the bench with the chance to play his way into the first XI as the tournament wore on. But he's not going to get that chance, with reports out of Argentina indicating that they preferred to have him play in the Olympics.
Does Argentina manager Gerardo Martino really not want Dybala?
The Olympics aren't on the FIFA calendar, though. Clubs are not obligated to release players for it like they are Copa America so Juventus are well within their right to bar him from The Games. You would think that Argentina would have cleared this up with Juventus ahead of time, and Dybala was clearly in the know about his club's stance, but who knows if the national team was.
It's possible that Argentina simply didn't want Dybala for Copa America, opting for more experienced players instead, but that would be strange, to put it kindly. Dybala is unquestionably one of their best attackers and while someone like Ezequiel Lavezzi does have experience, he's off playing in the Chinese Super League while Dybala is torching Serie A. From a quality and form standpoint, there's no doubt that Dybala is the choice.
Argentina could still put Dybala on the Copa America team if they want to. The rosters for the tournament were due last week, but there is an allowance for injured players, allowing teams to replace someone who has been hurt up to 24 hours before their first match. So if an Argentina player just coincidentally comes up with an injury, Dybala could slot in.
The fake injury might have to do for Argentina. It's either that as a fix for their error in not checking on Juventus' Olympic stance or they simply didn't want Dybala for Copa America. Neither is good, but the former can be remedied. The latter is just bad roster selection.
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