[7] In that year he also represented Juventus-SP, scoring one of the goals in the club's 2–3 loss against Linense in the second leg of the Copa Paulista Finals, which his side won after a 4–4 aggregate result.

[9] He made his debut for the club the following 16 January by starting and scoring his team's third in a 4–2 home win against Ituano, and was a regular starter in the 2008 Campeonato Paulista which his side reached the Finals.

[13] On 5 December 2010, Elias confirmed that he would leave Corinthians and join Spanish team Atlético Madrid in January 2011, for a rumoured fee of €7 million.

[14] The club confirmed the transfer on 16 December, and made his debut abroad on 17 January, starting in a 3–0 home win against RCD Mallorca.

[16] On 29 August 2011, after being deemed surplus to requirements at Atleti, Elias moved to Sporting CP on a five-year contract.

Elias was a regular starter during his loan spell, with Flamengo attempting to keep the midfielder for the 2014 campaign,[22] but the move did not materialize.

On 31 August 2016, Elias returned to Portugal and Sporting, signing a two-year contract, with a buyout clause of €60 million.