How Paulo Dybala outshone his idol, and announced himself to the world

Ask Paulo Dybala, and he’ll tell you that Paul Pogba misses playing for Juventus. As the Argentinian put it in an interview with Corriere dello Sport in December, "You just need to look at our league standing, and compare it to Manchester United's."

Or maybe there’s more to it than that. If Pogba does indeed hanker for his days in Turin, then one suspects it is at least in part because he misses playing with Dybala. The pair were inseparable during the Frenchman’s final season at Juventus, united by mutual admiration but also a youthful sense of mischief and fun. They danced, dabbed and lost hours playing video games together.

It was during one of those latter sessions that Pogba came up with his nickname for Dybala. "You know what I call him?" mused Pogba during an interview with the Italian newspaper La Stampa. "Square R2. That’s the combination of buttons you need to press on a PlayStation to do a turning shot. He always scores goals like that."

Anyone who has tracked Dybala’s development in Serie A would recognise the moves Pogba referenced. Barcelona, though, must not have been paying attention. Seven minutes into Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final first leg at J-Stadium, Barca allowed Dybala space to receive a pass from Juan Cuadrado in the right side of the penalty area, then to swivel and curve a trademark finish into the bottom corner.

Dybala was just getting started. In the 22nd he doubled Juventus' advantage with a gorgeous first-time effort from the edge of the box, sweeping Mario Mandzukic’s cut-back through the narrowest of gaps to beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen at his near post.

Related - Watch: Juventus' storming start vs. Barca rewarded with Dybala brace

It was the least Juventus deserved for a barnstorming first-half in which the Italian side had swarmed all over Barcelona with a furious high press, but also a reminder that football is a game of fine margins. Just seconds earlier, Gigi Buffon had made a brilliant reflex stop to prevent Andres Iniesta from equalising at the far end.

The keeper remains as important to this Juventus team as ever. Even now, at 39 years old, he might still be the best at his position on the planet. Dybala, though, is the future. And what a future it looks to be. Pogba believes his former teammate has the talent to win the Ballon d'Or. And Dybala himself has been forthright in saying that he intends to.

"I’ve always thought about it," he told Corriere dello Sport. "I didn’t get a single vote this time, but to be on the shortlist at 22 years old is incredible. Now I want to climb higher."

Nights like this one will do nothing to damage his cause. Dybala was yet to make his mark on the Champions League, with three goals in 13 appearances across the past two campaigns. But a brace against Barcelona - even this limp version, lacking the verve of past years, as well as the control of Sergio Busquets in midfield - cannot fail to capture the attention.

In the days leading up to this fixture, Dybala was asked about the prospect of going head-to-head with Lionel Messi. He was quick to dispel any comparisons, stressing his admiration for his compatriot but also that “I don’t want to be considered the ‘new Messi’ or the 'Messi of the future'."

No player benefits from that level of expectation. Messi has been, and remains, an unrepeatable talent. Still just 29 years old, he is in no hurry to relinquish his claim to being the best player on the planet. Even in this disjointed Barcelona performance, he remained a constant threat, unpicking Juventus at times only to watch in frustration as teammates failed to convert the opportunities he had made for them.

And yet, it still felt fitting that this should be the night when Dybala announced his talent to a wider audience. If he is "square R2," then Messi is the original "Playstation footballer" - a term which entered the footballing lexicon after Arsene Wenger described him as such back in April 2010.

It is far too soon to describe this as any kind of passing of the baton. Greatness is earned through years of consistent success, not snatched in the first legs of quarter-finals.

This was a night, though, when Dybala showed that he is capable of putting his team on his shoulders. His goals - in a game where Gonzalo Higuain missed a pair of gilt-edged opportunities - put Juventus in command of this tie, and Giorgio Chiellini’s second-half header ensures the Bianconeri will now take a 3-0 lead to the Camp Nou.

We have seen Barcelona overcome a bigger first leg deficit in this year’s competition. Somehow, though, the task before them seems more daunting than it did against Paris Saint-Germain. To eliminate Juventus the Blaugrana will not only need to find a way past Buffon, Chiellini and the rest of Juventus' exceptional defence, but also wrestle that metaphorical Playstation controller out of Dybala's hands.

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