Corinthians midfielder Paulinho has revealed that he twice rejected the opportunity to join Italian giants Inter Milan in January, with the timing of the move not ideal.
Paulinho, 24, has been wanted by Inter for some time but decided that with the recent change of Brazil national team management it was not the right time to make the move to the European game.
In doing so, he became just the latest in a series of Brazilian players to choose to remain in his homeland for the time being.
He told Globo Sportv: “I received two offers from Inter Milan. I decided to stay because it wasn’t the right moment to go.
“The financial side was very good but I always place my career ahead of the money. Time will tell when it will be the right moment.
“When a player wants a new challenge, he insists, but when he doesn’t want to go, he insists as well.
“The national team is one of the reasons why I stayed, as the manager had changed. If I had gone, it would have been a new beginning.”
Paulinho will join up with the Seleção once more next week as Brazil take on Italy and Russia in international friendlies.
Source: Sky Sports
