Paulo Dybala Reflects on Roma's Journey with Mourinho and World Cup Star El Ayanoui

Paulo Dybala doesn’t forget who opened the door to Rome for him. Or the night that slammed one shut.

On the eve of signing a new contract with Roma, the Argentine forward sat down with YouTuber Davoo in an interview reported by Corriere dello Sport, and pulled back the curtain on his bond with José Mourinho, his admiration for a World Cup revelation, and the scar that still burns from the Europa League final in Budapest.

Mourinho is a genius

Dybala’s move to Roma in 2022 changed the mood of an entire city. He’s in no doubt about who made it happen.

“Mourinho is a genius and a great person. He always spoke to us with respect, he took care of us, he loved us, and in Rome the people fell in love with him for what he gave. Thanks to him, I arrived in the capital.”

It’s a rare, unfiltered tribute. Not just to the coach, but to the man who turned Roma into a magnet for players who might once have looked elsewhere. Dybala’s words underline how much weight Mourinho’s presence carried in that decision and how deep the relationship between the dressing room and the Portuguese coach ran during his spell in the capital.

Keeping an eye on El Ayanoui

From the coach who brought him to Rome, Dybala shifted to a teammate who is catching global attention.

The Argentine highlighted El Ayanoui, his Roma colleague and a standout performer for Morocco at the World Cup.

“He's having a great World Cup, I'm following him. And at Roma, besides saying he's a strong player, he's also a good guy.”

Short, sharp praise, but telling. Dybala doesn’t just see a teammate riding a wave of form; he sees character, someone whose rise on the international stage mirrors his growing influence in the Giallorossi shirt.

The wound of Budapest

Then the conversation turned darker. Back to Budapest. Back to Sevilla.

Dybala revisited Roma’s Europa League final defeat and the performance of referee Anthony Taylor, a subject that still stirs anger across the Romanisti fanbase.

“It's true, the handball was absurd, but that wasn't the only thing that happened during the match. There were several moments when the referee called strange things: he didn't issue any cards, he was very lenient with some Sevilla players. And then that handball would have rewritten the final result if he had awarded the penalty. It really hurt me to lose that final.”

No softening of the language. No attempt to disguise the frustration. For Dybala, the controversial handball incident was just the climax of a pattern that left Roma feeling they were fighting on two fronts: against Sevilla and against the officiating.

The sense of injustice still lingers, but so does the ambition. A new contract in Rome, the memory of Mourinho’s influence, the rise of teammates like El Ayanoui, and the sting of a lost European final all feed into the same question: how far can Dybala and Roma push themselves to make sure the next shot at a trophy doesn’t slip away?