“I want to be champion” - Paulinho taking Mexican football by storm; watch all 13 of Portuguese striker’s goals with Toluca [video]
Paulinho has only been in Mexican football for less than half a year, but the Portuguese has already made himself one of the biggest stars of the Liga MX with Toluca
The former Braga and Sporting striker is the top goalscorer heading into the play-offs with 13 so far, putting him four goals clear of Cruz Azul’s Ángel Sepúlveda in second place. Most important for Paulinho, however, is to secure the title for Renato Paiva’s side.
Paulinho scored twice on his debut for Toluca back in July during a 3-2 win of Juarez, having arrived from Sporting in an €8m deal the previous month. Since then, the 32-year-old has established himself as the most feared goalscorer in the country as Toluca ended the Apertura league phase in 2nd place going into the final series.
“Top scorer? It's also important that my teammates have quality, and they have a lot of it. It makes it a little easier, but yes, we have to work in the box to move, create spaces and if it's not for us, we create spaces for our teammates. It's easier when your teammates have quality, which is the case at Toluca.
“The teams here try to play, our stadium is always full and that’s incredible,” he told reporters on Monday. “The players have a lot of quality. In Portugal we know about the quality of the Mexican player, but he has even more than we think.
“Since the first day I spoke to Renato [Paiva], the objective has been to be champion. I want Toluca to be the champion, not me. Obviously I want to score all the time, but for me, being the top scorer and not being champion with Toluca... I'm not going to celebrate, because it's nothing.
“I know what it's like to be champion and being champion is a wonderful thing,” he added, referencing his two league titles while at Sporting.
"We have to be strong mentally"
Paulinho’s celebration, in which he puts his index finger to his temple, has become a regular site for viewers of Liga MX. As well as addressing the gesture, the 3-time Seleção international says his family are settling well in Toluca, where they have been made to feel welcome by the Mexican people.
“Football is also a question of mentality,” he says. “I was going through a very difficult phase in my professional life and [the celebration] came out as: 'We have to be strong mentally'. That's how it stayed.
“My daughter now sees me on the pitch and she loves coming. After the game she goes to the pitch and walks a bit, she loves it. My daughter is my life and now she speaks more Spanish than Portuguese, she has been here for almost four months and she already speaks Spanish. She doesn’t speak much, but what she does speak is Spanish and I think she will be more Mexican than anything else.
“[Adapting] was difficult, [I felt] very tired [in the first games] but I’m happy.
“When you come from another country, it’s the people you talk to, the people you live with, the people you ask things to... They helped me a lot from day one and I will be eternally grateful to everyone.”
Toluca’s next match will be in the quarter finals of the final series, which will be played across two legs on 26th and 29th of November. Their opponents are yet to be established, with teams in the lower half of the qualifying spots facing off to reach the last eight.
Watch all 13 of Paulinho's goals in Liga MX:
The sensational story of Paulinho so far in Mexico.
— Sean Gillen (@SeanGillen9) November 12, 2024
Top goalscorer in Liga MX heading into the play-offs. Here are all 13 of his goals for title-chasers Toluca.pic.twitter.com/MTivxQaJQn
By @SeanGillen9