Why did Roma star Paulo Dybala tell Cristiano Ronaldo he “hated him” at Juventus?

Paulo Dybala is coming towards the end of his first year in the Italian capital, during which time he has fitted perfectly into José Mourinho’s system at AS Roma. The playmaker has become some of a talisman for the Giallorossi and played a decisive role in a number of matches, including the Europa League quarter-final against Feyenoord. Off the field, meanwhile, the Argentina international has been speaking about his seven-year spell at Juventus and his relationship with Cristiano Ronaldo.

In an interview with Scacco Capitale on DAZN, Dybala revealed that the admiration he had for the Portuguese was something that he never imagined feeling when he was younger. “We had three good years with Cristiano Ronaldo, we had a strong team and he gave us something extra”, said the attacker.

Dybala took sides in Messi-Ronaldo rivalry

“In Argentina, you can really feel the rivalry between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Obviously, as a child, I was always on Messi’s side. We were going to play a game one time, I was at the back of the plane and he [Ronaldo] was sitting at the front. At one point during the flight, he came up to me to speak about soccer and lots of other things. We talked about life in general and at one point I told him, “I practically hated you as a kid!” We laughed about that. We’ve always had a good relationship.

In their three years together in Turin, Dybala and Ronaldo teamed up to help Juve win two Serie titles, one Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italia twice before the Portuguese star left for Manchester United in August 2021.