Paulinho Must Be Patient at Tottenham Despite Recent Disappointments with Brazil

Paulinho not being part of the Brazil squad following the 2014 World Cup would not have been anticipated a year prior to it. The midfielder was a key part of the country's Confederations Cup triumph that summer, and a big-money move to Premier League outfit Tottenham Hotspur followed.

The expectation was Paulinho's prominence on the world stage would grow from there. Instead, after a tough first year in England and minimal contributions in the run-up to the hosts' humiliating semi-final exit to eventual winners Germany from Brazil '14, his stock has fallen with personal disappointments piling up.

The Selecao recorded a morale-boosting 2-0 win over South American rivals Argentina this past weekend. Paulinho was not involved as, for the second time this season, reappointed manager Dunga opted not to call him up.

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The player's omission from the squad to face the World Cup finalists was not a surprise given his sparse playing time for Tottenham so far this season. A poor half hour in their loss to West Bromwich Albion has been all Paulinho has been afforded in the league by his new club boss Mauricio Pochettino. His underwhelming performances in five cup appearances have hardly justified more.

Struggling to sufficiently impress either of the coaches who decide his fate will be a considerable source of frustration for the 26-year-old. The world at his feet one year, he is now in danger of falling by the wayside. Nonetheless, he must be patient in his attempts to engineer a change in fortunes.

Bar the first game back against AEL Limassol and the appearance off the bench versus West Brom, Paulinho has been used by Pochettino in a more advanced role than was primarily the case in 2013-14. It is a choice that should suit him moving forward under the Argentine's system.

Although not just someone who can only contribute going forward, the Brazilian's best moments in a Spurs shirt have mostly been with an eye on goal. Think of how he got into the box to net a late winner at Cardiff City last season. Or how he skillfully and purposefully drove Stoke City back as the north Londoners comfortably beat them 3-0 last December.

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In the early going of 2014-15 he has been the cup understudy to Christian Eriksen in the central attacking midfield position. As already mentioned, Paulinho has not largely not shone in his appearances here, but there have been hints at how he could make it work with some perseverance.

Even accounting for the weaker opposition, his display in the 3-0 home win against Limassol was marked by a welcome enthusiasm for the task at hand.

Paulinho was alert to a loose ball late in the first half and proceeded to set up Harry Kane for Spurs' opener. After the interval he closed down midfielder Diallo Guidileye in his own box, forcing him towards Vlad Chiriches who tackled him and played his team-mate in on goal to score (the Brazilian also made the terrific cross-field pass which led to Kyle Naughton winning a first-half penalty).

He had adhered well to Pochettino's instruction to press and had been positive in the final-third positions he sought to occupy. Away at Partizan Belgrade he started brightly in a similar fashion, linking up encouragingly with Harry Kane and Andros Townsend as they looked to open up the home side.

Alas, Paulinho's involvement quickly decreased to very little and he was withdrawn after an hour. That is what has been most puzzling about his showings in 2014 (both for Spurs and Brazil), the speed with which confidence has quickly given way to quietness. Often in the same game.

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Settling into a new country and new league almost certainly had some effect in the months that followed his transfer from Corinthians. Sporadic selections this season have made it difficult for him to get into a groove, as has playing in a cup line-up that has varied from game to game.

Judging the reluctance of a clearly talented player to impose himself as baffling would be overly harsh given we have no exact idea of his mindset. But it is close to that given he has been provided with helpful, though not quite perfect, means to excel (a key central position in Pochettino's Spurs side, quality attackers like Neymar and Oscar to work with in the national side).

Paulinho has had setbacks before, chiefly dealing with an unwelcome environment in previous spells in Lithuania and Poland that included racism. Perhaps his initial response to this is telling of the professional troubles that have followed in the last year.

"As soon as I returned to Brazil I lost hope, I lost confidence," he told the Daily Telegraph's Jason Burt in August 2013. "I was basically stuck for three weeks and when you are in this position that’s when sadness comes, when depression might sink in and, of course, I lost confidence."

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Yet, with the support of his family, he quickly came to the realisation of why he could not consider giving up. "If I had left football I would not have had anything. The reality was that as I remained at home I could not think of anything that could replace it."

Things might not be too rosy for Paulinho right now, but he should not give up. From the evidence of what he can do for Spurs in the role he looks like occupying this season, to the way he has battled back from adversity in the past, he has building blocks from which he can build form and confidence again.

Patience is key for Paulinho here. A long season is still ahead for Tottenham, and there will inevitably be times when they can do with a midfielder offering the penetration and finishing quality he does. The reemergence of that player would give Dunga and Brazil plenty to think about too.

It is up to Paulinho to try and up his game to the point he is properly ready to make the most of those opportunities when they do arise.