The Brazilian was the match-winner with a late goal in Guangzhou Evergrande’s 3-2 comeback win over Guizhou Renhe in the Chinese Super League.
Paulinho appears to be enjoying himself with Guangzhou Evergrande after opening his account in the Chinese Super League with a late winner that capped a fine comeback for the away side.
Facing second-bottom Guizhou Renhe, Luiz Felipe Scolari’s team found themselves 2-0 down before 40 minutes.
A defeat would have seen Shanghai SIPG leapfrog the league leaders with just three games remaining, but Guangzhou fought back before the break with a goal from Zhang Linpeng in first-half injury-time.
Gao Lin levelled the score in the 65th minute, but the game looked to be heading for a draw despite the introduction of former Manchester City man Robinho.
Guangzhou continued to plug away, with a total of 18 shots on the Renhe goal.
Yet their fans still had to wait until the 91st minute before they could celebrate, with Paulinho finishing neatly after controlling a pass into the box from Robinho with some fine footwork followed by a low driving shot.
The former Tottenham man, who endured a difficult final season at White Hart Lane last term, celebrated wildly and even picked up a yellow card for his troubles after removing his shirt.
It marks the second notable goal for Paulinho since he swapped England for China, with the midfielder previously netting from a free kick from all of 35 yards in the Asian Champions League.
Whether he can now kick on and potentially force his way into Dunga’s plans for the Brazil squad remains to be seen.
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