‘It’s psychological, I was scared’ – Dybala on coronavirus symptoms and Juventus pay-cut

Paulo Dybala has admitted he was “scared” after testing positive for coronavirus earlier this month, while opening up on the discussions that took place at Juventus before all players agreed to take a four-month pay-cut.

Dybala is one of three members of the Bianconeri squad to have tested positive for Covid-19, alongside Daniele Rugani and midfielder Blaise Matuidi.

A number of players at other Serie A clubs have also been diagnosed with the illness, with the Italian football season currently on hiatus until further notice.

Italy are currently the worst affected country in the world by the outbreak, as 105,792 cases have been confirmed to date along with 12,428 deaths.

The government has imposed a strict lockdown in a bid to contain the spread of the disease, forcing citizens to remain in their homes and shutting down all non-essential stores.

Dybala has been self-isolating with his girlfriend Oriana Sabatini since contracting coronavirus, and delivered a positive update on his condition last Friday.

The 26-year-old said he was feeling much better in a post on Juve’s official Twitter account, and he has now come out to offer a greater insight into his fears and symptoms over the past couple of weeks.

“I had a bad cough, I felt tired and when I slept, I felt cold. At first, I didn’t think about what it could be but it had happened to two other teammates and the last one was me,” Dybala said during an interview with the official AFA website.

“We had headaches, but it was advisable not to take anything. The club gave us vitamins and over time we felt better.

“It’s psychological. You were scared at first, but it’s okay now. These days we haven’t had any symptoms.

“I used to get tired faster. I wanted to train, but after five minutes I was already out of breath, and that’s when we realized that something wasn’t right, then the tests revealed that we were positive for the virus.

“A lot of people die here every day, things are very bad. You can’t handle cases anymore, that’s why many countries have sent their doctors. It’s not a lie, you have to be careful. People have to stay at home.”

Last week it was reported that Juve have reduced the wages of head coach Maurizio Sarri and all playing staff up until June, in a bid to limit the financial impact of the enforced break in the season.

Dybala went on to reveal that a unanimous decision was reached after captain Giorgio Chiellini led a meeting to go over the club’s plans to balance the books.

“Chiellini spoke to the president, then to the group,” he said. “We talked about it, there were different opinions, there were players who lacked one or two games to reach a clause, but this was the best thing to do.”