Dybala delivers victory but promises more is still to come

Dybala, a half-time substitute, scored the only goal of the game less than 20 minutes later; weaving past the visiting defence before lashing home expertly.

The goal completed a memorable evening for the World Cup-winning Argentine, after he received a special presentation from the club ahead of kick-off to commemorate his achievement in Qatar.

“There is room to improve, and that is definitely the case for me as well,” Dybala said after the game.

“Today the important thing was to win. The Coppa Italia is a target for us, we know that we have a chance to win it. Soon [Georginio] Wijnaldum will also rejoin us, and he’ll bring a lot of experience with him. That will be a big addition for us.”

He added: “The fans have shown their appreciation to me even before I won the World Cup. That affection means so much to me, today’s reception is something I will not forget.”

Dybala was asked where the team's priorities will lie over the second half of the campaign.

“It’s too early to talk about the league position,” he said.

“We are fighting on three fronts; the Coppa Italia is a target for us, we have the squad to compete and there are only three games to go [until the final].

“In the league there are stronger sides than us but we can fight for our targets. And then there is the Europa League which is also an important competition for us.

“I don’t know where we will end up, but our targets are clear.”

The forward also promised that he will find even greater form over the coming weeks.

“I hope to be back to my very best soon,” he said.

“We have a lot of games in quick succession right now, and sometimes it’s difficult to build up sharpness in training.

"You can only really do it by playing in matches, because there is not much time to train.”