Wants to leave West Ham
©IMAGO
In July this year, Lucas Paquetá was acquitted of match-fixing charges related to sports betting, averting a possible lifetime ban for the West Ham professional. Since Friday, the Brazilian – one of the most expensive purchases in Hammers history – has also known that the dispute with the Football Association will also end lightly for him. An independent commission only issued a warning. The English association also has to bear a large part of the costs incurred. It was taken into account that Paquetá had already experienced numerous significant disadvantages in his career as a result of the case, such as a failed move to Manchester City. Paquetá is now said to be aiming to leave London in the near future.
The FA began investigations against Paquetá in 2023 and later brought charges. The player was accused of deliberately attempting to receive a yellow card in several games “in order to influence the betting market so that one or more people can benefit from the bets,” the association said at the time. There were large amounts of warnings for Paquetá at the time on several accounts in Brazil that were used by the player’s family members. The player himself vehemently denied the allegations.
Paquetá is said to have been uncooperative with the FA during the investigation. In several cases he violated the association’s rules, but still managed to avoid a fine because the case placed such a heavy burden on the player and his career, both financially and in terms of his career. Significant legal fees, the impact on his mental health and that of his family, and his otherwise impeccable disciplinary record were the reasons for the leniency. In 2023, which is also mentioned as an aspect, a lucrative move to top club Man City fell through in connection with the case, which at the time signed Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes instead. At that time, West Ham missed out on an enormous transfer fee, which they themselves estimated was in the region of almost 100 million euros. The Londoners themselves paid Olympique Lyon 43 million euros in 2022. At the time, more money had only been spent on the previous Frankfurt player, Sébastien Haller.
Reports: Paquetá at West Ham before the jump
But there doesn’t seem to be much of a future for Paquetá at West Ham either. The Brazilian, whose real name is Lucas Tolentino Coelho de Lima but was born in the Paquetá district of Rio de Janeiro, is aiming for a move in the coming winter transfer window, the newspaper “The Times” recently reported, among others. As early as July, after he was acquitted of the manipulation allegations, Paquetá is said to have sought a change. However, West Ham rejected an offer from Aston Villa, which was said to have been received just a few days before the transfer deadline. West Ham also did not want to accept a loan offer from Flamengo.
This season, Paquetá has started all ten games of the season at West Ham and scored three goals. The Irons play against Newcastle United on Sunday and urgently need to score points in order to be able to move away from the bottom of the table in the medium term. The Londoners are now considered to be in danger of relegation, not only have they scored the second fewest points of all Premier League clubs (4), but they also have the weakest goal difference (-13, compared to the Premier League table).