Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino "appreciates" Roma's Paulo Dybala amid transfer links but there is nothing "concrete" between the two clubs at present, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Are Chelsea signing Dybala?

With Pochettino keen to add more quality to his attacking ranks next season, an unlikely name has emerged as one of his potential targets.

Roma's Dybala and Pochettino's fellow Argentine has been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge in recent days as the new Chelsea boss begins to shape his side.

29-year-old Dybala reportedly has a £10m release clause in his current deal with the Italian side, only available at that price to foreign clubs, and such a low fee for such a spectacular talent may be what has tempted Pochettino to consider the attacking midfielder.

There have also been previous links between Dybala and Paris Saint-Germain but there is nothing concrete between the former Juventus man and any other club at present.

According to Romano, Pochettino has been convinced by Dybala's quality, although there is no formal negotiations between Roma and Chelsea or Pochettino and Dybala.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano said: "For Chelsea, I had many questions in the recent days about Paulo Dybala, but again guys I'm not aware of anything advanced. This story is still not something concrete or something advanced.

"We always knew about Mauricio Pochettino appreciating Dybala but at the moment it's not a negotiation between Dybala and Chelsea, or a negotiation between Chelsea and Roma, or any message from Chelsea to inform Roma that they will send a proposal for the release clause."

Romano mentioning the release clause suggests that the reported £10m figure may be accurate but even if it was triggered Dybala would still have the final say on his future.

Having recently spoken about his desire to stay at Roma (via Metro), despite Thiago Silva wanting the Argentinian international at Stamford Bridge, a deal at present looks unlikely.

Dybala only arrived at Roma in July 2022, helping the club reach the Europa League final under Jose Mourinho. Despite scoring in the final, the playmaker couldn't prevent his side from ultimately losing on penalties to Sevilla.

How did Dybala do last season?

Featuring 38 times in all competitions for Roma last season, Dybala – hailed a "maestro" – enjoyed a wonderful campaign with the Giallorossi, scoring 18 goals and providing eight assists.

Injuries, much like they have done throughout his career, somewhat hampered Dybala's progress, but the numbers he produced in spite of missing a number of games were mightily impressive.

What Chelsea lacked last season was a player who could both score and create and Dybala seems to tick both of those boxes. Comfortable in an attacking midfield role or playing just off former Chelsea man Tammy Abraham at Roma, the 38-cap international thrived last year.

The maestro was in the top 2% of all Serie A attacking midfielders and wingers per 90 last season for goals and expected assists, while also ranking in the top 5% for shot-creating actions, averaging 5.38 per match.

With Chelsea having severely lacked creativity, ingenuity and ruthlessness in attack last season, Dybala could be a wonderful solution to their goalscoring woes if they can convince him to leave the Italian capital.