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Totti reveals Roma wanted him to present the number 10 shirt to Dybala
·24 September 2026·47d ago

Totti reveals Roma wanted him to present the number 10 shirt to Dybala

Source: GialloRossi.net

Francesco Totti has disclosed in his autobiography *Oltre* that Roma approached him to personally hand Paulo Dybala the number 10 shirt when Dybala arrived at the club in the summer of 2022. Totti declined the offer directly. The number 10 has remained unassigned at Roma since Totti's retirement, worn by no other player in the years since.

Totti explained his refusal was not a reflection on Dybala as a player. "If you have the courage, give it to him yourselves," Totti said. "Nothing against the player—quite the opposite, I like him very much, and he is a very good person. If you intend to do this, go ahead, but don't involve me." His core objection was to the framing of the decision: he did not want to become the guarantor of a choice made by the club without his involvement. "I didn't want the responsibility for someone else's decision to fall on me, a decision I had absolutely nothing to do with. The Roma number 10 carries weight, and it would inevitably invite comparisons with me. Dybala, if he's fit, can make a difference."

In *Oltre*, Totti outlined his vision for the shirt's future. He said he would never retire the number 10 permanently—"that would be like denying a wonderful dream to children. Every day I hope another Totti emerges: someone born in Rome, raised in Rome, who chooses Roma for life, for eternity." However, he argued against assigning it to players with limited tenure. "It would be a different matter to give that uniform to someone who arrives from the other side of the world, stays for a limited period and then leaves. It is too important a symbol, and should only be entrusted to someone who could potentially play for Roma for fifteen or twenty years."

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Testo Originale / Source Text

“Francesco Totti, nella sua nuova autobiografia “Oltre”, ha raccontato anche un retroscena legato a Paulo Dybala e alla maglia numero 10 della Roma. Una casacca che, dal giorno del ritiro dell’ex capitano, nessun altro giocatore giallorosso ha più indossato. Totti parte proprio dal significato…”

Read the full article in Italian at GialloRossi.net.

Read original on GialloRossi.net →

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