Goal.com: Barça in talks over signing of Brazil's Paulinho

Paulinho is one of Barcelona's transfer targets, according to Goal.com. They report that the Catalan club "opened talks this week" to try and sign the 28-year-old midfielder, a regular in the Brazil team currently playing for Chinese Super League side Guangzhou Evergrande under Luiz Felipe Scolari.

According to the website, at the beginning of this year Barça "sounded out" the player's people. However, it's been in the last few weeks that contact has extended to the Chinese club. The information says that negotiations are "still in the initial phase". 

The midielder came close to signing for Barça years ago during the 2013 Confederations Cup. The Catalan club arrived late on the scene, though, and the then Corinthians player, who had won the Libertadores and the Club World Cup 2012, already had an agreement in place with Tottenham. 

Things did not go as planned in the Premier League and he ended up in China. With Scolari on the bench, he's recovered his best form. 

He's now been at Guangzhou Evergrande for three years and has won six trophies: one Asian Champions League (which saw him play against Barça in the 2015 Club World Cup), two Chinese leagues, a cup and a two Super Cups. 

Tite, who had been his coach at Corinthians, has given him an important role in the Brazil side since taking oer. And he's repaying the faith shown in him with performances, for example, such as the one against Uruguaya, when he scored a hat-trick in a 1-4 win in Montevideo.