Pauleta had his most successful spell at Paris Saint-Germain, where he scored 109 goals across all competitions.
13 Facts About Pauleta
2.
Pauleta scored 47 goals in 88 matches for Portugal, a national record at the time of his retirement.
3.
Pauleta played for his country in two World Cups and two European Championships.
4.
Pauleta was part of FC Porto's youth team for a brief stint yet left soon due to homesickness, signing his first professional contract with CU Micaelense in 1994 and spending one year there.
5.
The goals continued to flow following a switch to Spanish second level side UD Salamanca in 1996, with Pauleta scoring 19 goals as it gained promotion to La Liga in the following year, adding a further 15 in his first season in the top flight.
6.
On 1 September 2000, after being tracked by the likes of Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Sunderland, Pauleta joined FC Girondins de Bordeaux in France, reportedly for financial and family reasons.
7.
Pauleta helped the capital side to its first silverware in six years by scoring the only goal of the 2004 French Cup final against LB Chateauroux, and continued with his goal scoring exploits in the league, netting 18 times in 37 contests as they finished the league in second place.
8.
Pauleta retired at 35 without having played one game in Portugal's Primeira Liga, subsequently staying at PSG but in an ambassadorial role; he remained the club's top scorer of all time with 109 goals in 211 matches, until the record was broken by Zlatan Ibrahimovic in October 2015.
9.
Pauleta returned to football at the age of 37, joining amateurs Grupo Desportivo Sao Roque in the Azores' regional leagues and retiring shortly after arriving.
10.
Pauleta was the first Portugal national team player to never have played in the Portuguese top level when he made his international debut against Armenia, in August 1997.
11.
Pauleta would have to wait 18 months for his first start, against the Netherlands.
12.
Pauleta usually operated as a lone striker or alongside another forward, and combined mobility, pace and athleticism with good technique, two-footedness and strength in the air.
13.
Pauleta's nickname was passed down from generation to generation in the family of his father's maternal grandmother, while his goal celebration of spreading his arms like wings earned him the additional moniker The Eagle of the Azores.