Paulo Dybala once admitted that he didn’t like Cristiano Ronaldo when he was a child in front of the Portuguese superstar. Dybala made the statement on the show “Scacco Capitale” on DAZN: “I had three fantastic years with Cristiano. The team was superior, and he gave us extra strength. The competition between him and Lionel Messi was deeply felt in Argentina, and as a child, I always supported Messi.”

“Once, we were on a plane traveling to a game. He was sitting right in front of me. Sometimes, he came to me to talk about football and other things. We usually talked about life, and I told Ronaldo to his face that ‘I really hated you when I was a kid.’ We laughed. We always had a good relationship,” the AS Roma star added.

After Ronaldo left Juve in 2021, Dybala did something similar a year later. He moved to Rome to wear the AS Roma shirt under Jose Mourinho. Despite some fitness issues, the 29-year-old player still contributed 25 goals in 34 matches this season, helping the “Giallorossi” have a chance to qualify for the Champions League and reach the Europa League semifinals.

Regarding his decision to join the capital club, Dybala said: “The story began from the Roman Colosseum. When I was young, I watched many movies about Rome and gladiators. I have probably watched the movie ‘Gladiator’ 20 times. When Roma contacted me, these things came to my mind. I told myself that I had to do something in this city.”

Dybala affirmed that Mourinho had a significant influence on his decision. Currently, the two have a good relationship, and the Argentine striker trusts that the team will achieve success under the leadership of “The Special One.”