Portuguese outlet O Jogo this week featured a story about midfielder Paulinho, who’s recently signed for third division side Sanjoanense.
The most interesting thing about the 22-year-old is that despite his young age, he’s been at big English clubs such as Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Paulinho has trained for both club’s academies, and that’s what makes him a player with a lot of stories to tell these days.
O Jogo is a bit sensationalist to say he’s been managed by Jurgen Klopp and Nuno Espírito Santo, but still, his interview turns out to be quite interesting, starting with when he joined the Reds in 2016.
“My teammates ask me what it was like and I tell them it was a world apart… having been called up to the main team was special,” Paulinho told O Jogo.
“I remember making my debut at Anfield Road playing for the U-23 and then I was told that I was going to be called up for the first team.”
Regarding Jurgen Klopp, he says: “Out there seems to be funny, but in training he’s very strict and demanding.”
And there was a specific Liverpool star he liked, which was Philippe Coutinho: “I sat next to him in the dressing room, I spoke to him a few times and he was a special player.”
It was in the summer of 2018 that Paulinho left Liverpool and moved to Wolves. He’s only featured for the U-21 and U-23 squads, but could still train next to the first team players.
“The U-23’s were training in a field next to the first team and we interacted a lot with them. I started admiring João Moutinho a lot.”
