Injured Dybala set to miss Juventus' Champions League clash with Villarreal

Paulo Dybala will miss the first leg of Juventus' Champions League last-16 clash with Villarreal due to injury.

The Argentina international was forced off in the second half during a 1-1 derby draw with Torino in Serie A on Friday.

Bianconeri head coach Massimiliano Allegri appeared unworried by the injury to one of his key forwards after the game, but Juve confirmed on Sunday that the former Palermo man is expected to be out for 10 days due to muscle problems in his left thigh.

The 28-year-old, who is Juve's leading scorer across all competitions with 12 goals this season, will therefore be absent from the clashes with Villarreal on Tuesday and the Serie A meeting with Empoli on Saturday.

Allegri's side brought in Dusan Vlahovic in January but the absence of Dybala will be a big miss, the striker topping Juve's charts for minutes per goal (154.7), while he has added a team-high six assists.

Juve will also be without Daniele Rugani after he suffered a hamstring problem against Torino.

The centre-back is expected to be out of action for a similar period of time to Dybala, with the pair eyeing a return against Fiorentina on March 2 in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final.

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