Dybala will have to leave Juventus to improve, claims Alves

Dani Alves has told Paulo Dybala he will have to leave Juventus in order to reach his full potential.

Argentina international Dybala has been tipped as Lionel Messi’s heir, a claim that gained more weight when he hit a double in Juve’s 3-0 Champions League quarter-final first-leg win over Barcelona.

The 23-year-old has been persistently linked with a move to Camp Nou, as well as LaLiga champions Real Madrid, and Juve team-mate Alves believes such a transfer is required for him to improve.

“La Joya [Dybala’s nickname] will bear fruit,” Alves said in an interview on Esporte Interativo.

“We have spoken many times and I told him that one day, I do not know when, he will have to leave Juventus to improve even more.”

Campeones! Campioni! Champions ! #LE6END #finoallafine pic.twitter.com/a2dB2lQEBE

— Paulo Dybala (@PauDybala_JR) May 21, 2017

Dybala has won back-to-back Scudetti and Coppa Italia since joining Juve in 2015, but he was on the losing side in the Champions League final this month in a 4-1 defeat to Real Madrid.

Regarding his own future, Alves, who has one year remaining on his contract with Juventus, would be interested in a move to the Premier League.

“Last year I turned down many offers from the Premier League because I felt I had to go to Serie A,” he said.

“There is a great defensive culture, and to go and play in England you have to know how to defend well.

“I hope that one day I will go there.”

Asked if that could happen soon, Alves responded: “Who knows? We’ll see.”