Paulo da Silva

Paulo da Silva
Da Silva in 2011
Personal information
Full name Paulo César da Silva Barrios
Date of birth (1980-02-01) 1 February 1980
Place of birth Asunción, Paraguay
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Centre-back
Youth career
Atlántida
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1995 Atlántida 36 (0)
1996 Presidente Hayes ? (?)
1997 Sport Colombia 1+ (?)
1997–1998 Cerro Porteño 30 (1)
1998–1999 Perugia 2 (0)
1999–2000 Lanús 14 (1)
2000–2001 Venezia 7 (0)
2001 Cosenza 2 (0)
2002–2003 Libertad 30 (2)
2003–2009 Toluca 235 (20)
2009–2011 Sunderland 24 (0)
2011–2012 Zaragoza 42 (1)
2012–2015 Pachuca 33 (2)
2013–2015Toluca (loan) 76 (12)
2015–2017 Toluca 72 (2)
2017–2021 Libertad 50 (0)
2021–2022 12 de Octubre 67 (2)
2023 Independiente 8 (0)
2023 12 de Junio 9 (?)
2024 Atlántida 14 (0)
International career
1994–1997 Paraguay U17 7+ (1)
1999 Paraguay U20 14+ (2)
2000 Paraguay U23 9+ (0)
2000–2017 Paraguay 148 (3)
Managerial career
2024 Sol de América (assistant manager)
Medal record
Representing  Paraguay
Copa América
Runner-up2011 ArgentinaTeam
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 07:54, 18 October 2024 (UTC)

Paulo César da Silva Barrios (born 1 February 1980) is a Paraguayan former professional international footballer who played as a centre-back. He is one of the players in football with most official appearances ever with over 1,039 official appearances.

He played top-flight football in Mexico, Paraguay, Spain, England, Italy and Argentina, mostly in Mexico, where in 2015 became a naturalized Mexican citizen.

He played for the Paraguay national team from 2000 to 2017, and is their most-capped player of all time, earning over 100 caps, with the Paraguayan Football Association recognizing 150 caps, but FIFA 148. He played at two World Cups and four Copa América tournaments, helping his country finish as runners-up in the 2011 Copa América.

A player highly regarded, in December 2023, featured in a legends match organized by CONMEBOL.