Caio Fernando de Oliveira (born 11 May 1998), known as Caio Paulista, is a Brazilian footballer who plays as a left-back or winger for Atlético Mineiro, on loan from Palmeiras.
Born in São Paulo, Caio represented Ceará before joining Avaí's youth categories in 2017. He made his senior debut on 8 March 2018, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 1–0 Campeonato Catarinense away loss against Hercílio Luz;[1] he only featured in one further match during the campaign, as his side achieved promotion to the Série A.
Promoted to the main squad ahead of the 2019 season, Caio made his top tier debut on 19 May of that year by starting in a 1–1 draw at Vasco da Gama.[2]
On 8 January 2020, still owned by Tombense, Caio moved to Fluminense on loan until the end of the year.[3] He scored his first professional goal on 14 October 2020, netting the opener in a 1–1 away draw against Atlético Mineiro.[4] He subsequently featured regularly for the side, and had his loan extended until the end of 2021 on 2 March of that year.[5]
On 9 September 2021, Caio signed a permanent five-year contract with Flu.[6] During the 2022 season, he was used as a left-back by head coach Fernando Diniz.[7]
On 27 January 2023, Caio was announced at São Paulo on loan for the season.[8] A regular starter in the left-back for the season, he helped the club to win their first-ever Copa do Brasil title.
On 10 December 2023, São Paulo notified Fluminense for a permanent transfer of Caio, agreeing to a R$ 17 million fee.[9] However, after disagreements between the club and the athlete's rights representative, Alexandre Uram, the deal ended up not being completed.[10]
On 5 January 2024, Caio signed a five-year contract with Série A reigning champions Palmeiras,[11] for a reported transfer fee of €3.8 million.[12]
On 14 February 2025, Caio joined Atlético Mineiro on a season-long loan.[13]
| Club | Season | League | State league | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Avaí | 2018 | Série B | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2019 | Série A | 26 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 0 | |||
| Subtotal | 26 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 37 | 0 | ||||
| Fluminense | 2020 | Série A | 22 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | — | 32 | 3 | |
| 2021 | 27 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6[b] | 2 | — | 45 | 4 | |||
| 2022 | 27 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 3[a] | 1 | — | 44 | 2 | |||
| 2023 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Subtotal | 76 | 6 | 25 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 10 | 3 | — | 122 | 9 | |||
| São Paulo (loan) | 2023 | Série A | 28 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 6[a] | 2 | — | 50 | 5 | |
| Palmeiras | 2024 | Série A | 24 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 0 |
| 2025 | — | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| Subtotal | 24 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 0 | ||
| Atlético Mineiro (loan) | 2025 | Série A | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5[a] | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | |
| Career total | 159 | 7 | 58 | 1 | 26 | 1 | 23 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 266 | 14 | ||
Avaí
Fluminense
São Paulo
Palmeiras
Atlético Mineiro
