Atletico Mineiro have completed the permanent signing of Brazil under-23 forward Paulinho on a free transfer, the Brazilian club said on Monday.

The 22-year-old, who joined Atletico on loan from Germany's Bayer Leverkusen last December, will be tied to the Belo Horizonte outfit until December 2027.

Paulinho made 79 appearances across all competitions for Bayer Leverksusen and scored nine goals after joining the Bundesliga club from Vasco da Gama in 2018.

Since arriving at Atletico last December, he has scored 14 times and provided six assists in 34 appearances.

Atletico Mineiro are currently 10th in Brazil's 20-team standings with five wins from 13 games so far.