PAULINHO returns to European football for the third time after his £17million move to Spurs.
But the Brazilian midfielder, whose signing is a major coup for Tottenham, is still scarred by the racial abuse he suffered during his previous spells in Lithuania and Poland.
Paulinho, 24, has become Andre Villas-Boas’ latest signing after becoming one of Brazil’s biggest stars with Sao Paulo giants Corinthians.
He started his career with a club called Pao de Acucar, which is owned by a supermarket with the same name and looks to develop and then sell players.
When he was 17 he moved to eastern Europe to play for FC Vilnius in Lithuania — and was then transferred to Polish side LKS Lodz, where he was often forced to play right-back in the worst spell of his career.
But, during both spells, Paulinho had to endure rival supporters making monkey chants and thugs throwing lighters at him.
This forced him to return to Brazil where he rebuilt his career and became an established star, playing 17 times for the national team.
He said: “After all I had been through, all those bad moments, bad things, I carried on. I knew about my potential.
“I knew what I could do. Never mind where you are, you have to fight until the end. It’s important you never give up.
“I went back to Brazil and started from scratch. I had the self-confidence to take that step back and then managed to take two steps forward.”
Paulinho was brought up in the tough Sao Paulo district of Parque Novo Mundo.
He used to play futsal with his older brother, Erik, and watch his stepfather play at the weekend.
Paulinho said: “I started my struggle at five, playing in the streets. My brother taught me to play futsal, which is a five-a-side game.
“He didn’t have the opportunity to play more football but he’s my role model.
“I started at Portuguesa at the age of 12 and had to overcome many difficulties. Sometimes we didn’t even have the money to fuel the car and I had to take the bus to training. I don’t really like talking about that period of my life.”
His brother, Erik, said: “He always liked football but he was just playing around. Then you start seeing things more clearly. Everyone told him he had a future in football.”
Paulinho travelled to Europe with his then girlfriend, Barbara, who is now his wife.
After returning to Brazil and playing for Pao de Acucar and Bragantino, his career took off when he switched to Corinthians in 2010 — with Roma and Inter Milan the first to show an interest.
In a recent poll by sports paper Lance, he was voted the greatest midfielder in Corinthians’ history.
He was one of the stars of the Confederations Cup, and was voted the third-best player.
Paulinho said: “It’s rewarding. I never thought I would be in a place like this, among these great players. It’s an award the group helped me win.
“Now I am at Spurs and I am very happy.”