Former Spurs star, Selecao hat-trick hero close to Italy… twice
Once seen as the future of the Brazilian midfield, the former Santos man was expected to conquer all before him when he moved to Tottenham on the back of a league, Libertadores and World Club Championship treble.
Instead, the 28-year-old failed to impress at White Hart Lane, moving to Guangzhou Evergrande in 2015 when Milan were also very interested in nabbing him.
The Rossoneri weren’t the only Italian side that used to have an interest, with Inter also running Tottenham close back in 2013, only for Spurs to pip their rivals with a €20m bid.
Despite moving to China, Paulinho has managed to return to a good level, something he proved last night by smashing an entirely unexpected hat-trick past Uruguay in Montevideo, helping the Selecao to a 4-1 result and a seventh-straight win.
A question is worth asking at this stage: are we sure that this man isn’t worthy of another shot in Europe? Even then, he recently signed an extension that will keep him in China until 2020, so he won’t come cheap…