He's been the man in demand for almost the entirety of 2017. Paulo Dybala has teased every brand that has chased his signature this year, but now he looks set to join adidas after wearing the X 17+ for Juventus this week.
The 10 month long chase began in February 2017 when Dybala's contract with Nike expired. Since then, the Argentine has been wearing blacked out editions of the Nike Superfly, PUMA One 17.1, and more recently the X 17+, before peeling away that blackout disguise to sport the "Skystalker Pack" and score twice against Verona on Saturday.
When you consider a player like Luis Suarez earns £1million-a-year from adidas, and Pogba around £3million-a-year, it's surprising that a player of Dybala's calibre went without a brand endorsement for so long. But as his boots stayed in the shadows, his profile was very much in the spotlight, and in turn will have no doubt given him the bargaining power as he joins the adidas ranks.
Dybala switched into the X 17+ last summer, having worn a blacked out pair of Mercurial Superfly V boots throughout the 2016/17 season which saw Juventus reach the Champions League final. Many assumed he'd sign a contract with adidas ahead of the 2017/18 season, but for whatever reason that didn't materialise. Contracts can be complicated cases, but Dybala leaving his previous Nike contract early may have triggered a clause which prevented him from wearing another brand until the end of the year.
Whatever the reason for the delay, it looks all but confirmed that adidas have finally got their man. A player with a stylish look, expressive play and even comes complete with his own logo; he's a marketing dream. A huge signing to bulk up the X squad as adidas look to win the World Cup brand battle in Russia this summer.
