Paulo da Silva

"Paulo César da Silva" redirects here. For the Brazilian wrestler with the same name, see Giant Silva.

Paulo da Silva

Personal information
Full name	Paulo César da Silva Barrios
Date of birth	1 February 1980 (1980-02-01) (age 31)
Place of birth	Asunción, Paraguay
Height	1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Playing position	Centre back
Club information
Current club	Zaragoza
Number	14
Youth career
	Atlántida
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1996–1997	Atlántida	29	(0)
1997–1998	Cerro Porteño	30	(1)
1998–1999	Perugia	2	(0)
1999–2000	Lanús	12	(1)
2000–2001	Venezia	7	(0)
2001	Cosenza	2	(0)
2002–2003	Libertad	30	(2)
2003–2009	Toluca	196	(12)
2009–2011	Sunderland	18	(0)
2011–	Zaragoza	24	(0)
National team‡
1999	Paraguay U20	?	(?)
2000–	Paraguay	100	(2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 8 November 2011. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 2 July 2011

This name uses Spanish naming customs; the first or paternal family name is Da Silva and the second or maternal family name is Barrios.

Paulo César da Silva Barrios (born 1 February 1980 in Asunción) is a Paraguayan football defender, who has played for the Paraguay national football team since 2000.^[2] He currently plays for Real Zaragoza in the Spanish La Liga.

Career

Throughout his career Da Silva has left a mark, especially in the Mexican League, by being a consistent good defender and leader.

Club

Da Silva started his career in the youth divisions of Atlántida Sport Club. Before joining Toluca, da Silva played for Perugia and Venezia of Italy, and Lanús of Argentina. He joined Toluca from Paraguayan club Libertad for the 2003 Apertura. Since making his debut, da Silva has been a mainstay in Toluca's defence, starting all but one game that he has played and eventually becoming the team's captain due to his leadership on the field. In 2007 he was chosen for the "Ideal Eleven" squad of South America^[3] and in 2008 he led Toluca to the Apertura 2008 title, being chosen as the best overall player of the tournament by the Mexican media.^[4]

Sunderland

On 13 July 2009, Da Silva joined Sunderland A.F.C. on a three year deal.His arrival at the Stadium of Light was followed by a long and confusing period in regards to his visa application. Da Silva was granted a work permit to play in England almost immediately but had to wait for over a month to get his visa before it was eventually granted on 12 August. He made his debut on the 24th August against Norwich City in the League Cup. Da Silva, like John Mensah, made his full debut for Sunderland in their 2–0 win against Birmingham City in the Carling Cup 4th round. Paulo was rotated throughout his first season at the club but performed consistently when required. Manager Steve Bruce cited 'settlement' as the reason behind playing Da Silva in phases, stating he needs time to adjust to the English game and lifestyle. Da Silva was joined at the club by his international teammate Christian Riveros in May 2010. Da Silva's second season at Sunderland was a difficult one, as he made just a handfull of appearances. His last appearance for Sunderland came in their home defeat to Notts County in the FA Cup on 8 January 2011.

Real Zaragoza

Da Silva joined Real Zaragoza from Sunderland in January 2011 for an undisclosed fee.^[5]

International career

He played for Paraguay in 1997 and 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship, but missed the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan. However, he was named in the 23-man squad for the 2006 World Cup in Germany. He also played at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa,^[6] featuring in all five of Paraguay's games in their run to the quarter-finals, and provided an assist for Sunderland teammate Cristian Riveros in their 2-0 win against Slovakia in the group stages.

Honours

Libertad

• Primera División de Paraguay: 2002, 2003

Toluca

• CONCACAF Champions' Cup: 2003
• Primera División de México: 2005 Apertura, 2008 Apertura
• Campeón de Campeones: 2003, 2006

Individual

• Chosen on the CONMEBOL Best Eleven team: 2007
• Best player of the Primera División de México: 2008

References

1. ^ Paulo da Silva FIFA World Cup profile
2. ^ rsssf: Paraguay record international footballers
3. ^ CONMEBOL article
4. ^ Por encima de todos
5. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/9381926.stm
6. ^ http://www.safc.com/news/20100601/da-silva-and-riveros-make-the-cut_2256213_2062635

External links

• Real Zaragoza official profile (Spanish)
• BDFutbol profile
• Paulo da Silva career stats at Soccerbase
• Paulo da Silva at National-Football-Teams.com
• 2010 FIFA World Cup profile
• Paulo da Silva – FIFA competition record
• Transfermarkt profile

Persondata
Name	Da Silva, Paulo
Alternative names
Short description	Footballer
Date of birth	1 February 1980
Place of birth	Asunción, Paraguay
Date of death
Place of death