What happened to Paulinho after Tottenham? China star, La Liga champion and a sporting director on the rise

When Paulinho left Tottenham for China, some said his footballing career was over but, in fact, it was anything but. His debut season in North London had actually been pretty solid after joining Corinthians for £17 million.

He scored eight goals in 37 matches from central midfield, with everything about him seemingly tailor-made for the Premier League. But, come the summer, things changed.

Paulinho played as Germany beat Brazil 7-1 in that World Cup semi-final. The sobering experience was tough to recover from, even more so when a full season is staring you in the face.

That season was a complicated one. Tottenham Hotspur appointed Mauricio Pochettino, and Paulinho went on to start just three games.

"I thought the moment had come to leave. But I wanted to leave," he said.

"The coach wasn't trusting in me so there's no reason to stay. In 2015, Paulinho left Tottenham and moved to Guangzhou Evergrande in China to play under Luiz Felipe Scolari, his former international boss.

He went, too, well aware that it could write him off for good. It's not the same,"he told The Guardian.

"The level didn't compare with Spain, Italy, England, Germany; it's totally different." But it was a trophy-laden spell, with six titles over the next two seasons, including the AFC Champions League in 2015. That led them into the Club World Cup, where Paulinho headed them into the semi-finals deep in stoppage time as they took on Club América.

That led to a meeting with one of Europe's elite: Barcelona.