Paulinho, resurrected in China’s graveyard
The Independent|
Updated: Nov 13, 2017, 11.20 PM IST
Paulinho’s exit from the Premier League in the summer of 2015 was, if not unmarked, then certainly unmourned. Given the fact that he had done virtually nothing of note for Tottenham that season, lost his place in the Brazil team since the disastrous World Cup, and was about to sign for Guangzhou Evergrande in the Chinese Super League, it was possible even to see his departure as a form of career death.
Except, remarkably, Paulinho is coming back. Two-and-a-half-years after failing even to make the bench for Tottenham’s League Cup final defeat against Chelsea, the 29-year-old central midfielder returned to Wembley on Tuesday: not as an expensive failure, or yesterday’s man, or a player Mauricio Pochettino decided was less useful than either Ryan Mason or Nabil Bentaleb, but as a key man in arguably the best club side and the best international side in the world at the moment.
His six goals have helped power Brazil to next summer’s World Cup in Russia. Meanwhile, after becoming perhaps the most underwhelming Barcelona signing since Christophe Dugarry, he has comfortably justified his fee, scoring vital goals and offering high-tempo bite in the centre of the pitch. Against all the odds, Paulinho is back from the dead.
All of which looked garishly unlikely just a few short months ago, when Paulinho was presented to around 2,000 nonplussed Barcelona fans at an almost empty Camp Nou. There were unverified reports that he had paid €7.5m of his own money to make the deal happen. There were other reports that not a single Paulinho shirt had been sold in the club shop on the day of his unveiling.
And so, having arrived in a flurry of negative briefings, internet lolz and general apathy, and coming just as his international teammate Neymar was leaving for Paris Saint-Germain, Paulinho’s transfer fitted neatly into a wider tale of Barcelona decay and crisis. In fact, by all accounts, Paulinho was also one of the Chinese Super League’s shrewdest signings to date: old enough to pilot a side, young enough to make an impact, humble enough to work hard, ambitious enough to be in it for more than cash. He scored some superb goals, trained well, and picked up two CSL titles and an Asian Champions League before Barcelona made their enquiry.
It was a game-changing transfer: not just for Paulinho himself, but for an entire generation of footballers who could now see that leaving Europe could actually be a stepping stone to bigger things. “Reaching my dream at 29 years of age, I thought would be impossible,” Paulinho admitted.
Why did Barcelona want Paulinho? Perhaps because there are actually surprisingly few players like him. The Lampard-style classic No 8 has been in decline for some years at the top level, but Paulinho’s tireless energy, clever late runs into the box and physical threat give him an increasingly rare skill profile.
And although not been a regular starter, Paulinho has quietly become a vital cog in the Barcelona machine currently eight points clear of Real Madrid in La Liga.
He has been restored to the national team, too, reuniting with his former manager Tite at Corinthians. A stunning hat-trick in the 4-1 thumping of Uruguay in March was the highlight of a qualifying campaign in which only Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus has contributed more goals to the Brazilian cause.
And so, perhaps, Paulinho’s return to England provides an opportunity to re-examine one of those players who may never earn star billing but who at his best, simply makes everything tick along just a little more smoothly: a decent finisher, a surprisingly tenacious tackler, an underrated aerial threat, a tireless runner. A rather English-style player, in fact. Perhaps the biggest irony of all is that England is the country that probably remains the most resistant to Paulinho’s charms.
Except, remarkably, Paulinho is coming back. Two-and-a-half-years after failing even to make the bench for Tottenham’s League Cup final defeat against Chelsea, the 29-year-old central midfielder returned to Wembley on Tuesday: not as an expensive failure, or yesterday’s man, or a player Mauricio Pochettino decided was less useful than either Ryan Mason or Nabil Bentaleb, but as a key man in arguably the best club side and the best international side in the world at the moment.
His six goals have helped power Brazil to next summer’s World Cup in Russia. Meanwhile, after becoming perhaps the most underwhelming Barcelona signing since Christophe Dugarry, he has comfortably justified his fee, scoring vital goals and offering high-tempo bite in the centre of the pitch. Against all the odds, Paulinho is back from the dead.
All of which looked garishly unlikely just a few short months ago, when Paulinho was presented to around 2,000 nonplussed Barcelona fans at an almost empty Camp Nou. There were unverified reports that he had paid €7.5m of his own money to make the deal happen. There were other reports that not a single Paulinho shirt had been sold in the club shop on the day of his unveiling.
And so, having arrived in a flurry of negative briefings, internet lolz and general apathy, and coming just as his international teammate Neymar was leaving for Paris Saint-Germain, Paulinho’s transfer fitted neatly into a wider tale of Barcelona decay and crisis. In fact, by all accounts, Paulinho was also one of the Chinese Super League’s shrewdest signings to date: old enough to pilot a side, young enough to make an impact, humble enough to work hard, ambitious enough to be in it for more than cash. He scored some superb goals, trained well, and picked up two CSL titles and an Asian Champions League before Barcelona made their enquiry.
It was a game-changing transfer: not just for Paulinho himself, but for an entire generation of footballers who could now see that leaving Europe could actually be a stepping stone to bigger things. “Reaching my dream at 29 years of age, I thought would be impossible,” Paulinho admitted.
Why did Barcelona want Paulinho? Perhaps because there are actually surprisingly few players like him. The Lampard-style classic No 8 has been in decline for some years at the top level, but Paulinho’s tireless energy, clever late runs into the box and physical threat give him an increasingly rare skill profile.
And although not been a regular starter, Paulinho has quietly become a vital cog in the Barcelona machine currently eight points clear of Real Madrid in La Liga.
He has been restored to the national team, too, reuniting with his former manager Tite at Corinthians. A stunning hat-trick in the 4-1 thumping of Uruguay in March was the highlight of a qualifying campaign in which only Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus has contributed more goals to the Brazilian cause.
And so, perhaps, Paulinho’s return to England provides an opportunity to re-examine one of those players who may never earn star billing but who at his best, simply makes everything tick along just a little more smoothly: a decent finisher, a surprisingly tenacious tackler, an underrated aerial threat, a tireless runner. A rather English-style player, in fact. Perhaps the biggest irony of all is that England is the country that probably remains the most resistant to Paulinho’s charms.
