Lucas Paqueta is in big trouble, and it’s not an exaggeration to say that. The West Ham midfielder was living in a daydream. And with good reason, as only a year after joining the Premier League from Olympique Lyonnais for an estimated sum of more than €61 million, the Brazilian had to let go of his partners during this summer transfer window. In fact, Manchester City had done almost everything to record his arrival. An arrival that would have allowed Pep Guardiola to recover an extremely creative player for his midfield.
Lucas Paqueta, extra piece claimed by Pep Guardiola
Because yes, with Ilkay Gundogan’s free debut and Kevin De Bruyne’s long-term injury, the Citizens have kept Lucas Paqueta as their absolute priority. Most of all, the Hammers remained intractable in negotiations, with the latter having a whole lot of trouble persuading their counterparts to let their boss go on to play. Which finally got done. Thus the British press unanimously announced a complete settlement in the matter in exchange for a check for approximately 100 million euros. Yes, but there you go, things don’t always turn out the way you might expect. A saying that rings true even in the football world.
In fact, at the time of writing, Lucas Paqueta should not ultimately be among the last current European champions. The Reason? The former Lyonnais is under investigation by the English Football Federation (FA) over suspected involvement in a betting rigging scandal. Apparently the investigation went on for several months. A player deemed suspicious by the officials will receive three yellow cards. the first on 11 March against Aston Villa, the second on 21 May against Leeds and finally the third, a few days earlier, on 12 August against Bournemouth. At all Premier League grounds. And a lot of the hostilities that we now know would have started in the last city as well.
FA gets involved, file goes overboard
You have to understand that Lucas Paqueta may have done it intentionally to get these three yellow cards in order to take advantage of some of his knowledge in the very specific context of sports betting. One version of the facts was extensively refuted by the respective chief’s lawyers, leaving behind a lack of solid evidence in the process. Investigation will be done in its own way. But for now, it is clear that this unfortunate episode calls into question the development of his young career. From the height of his 25 years, Lucas Paqueta has found an admirable fixture under the West Ham tunic. What did he lack during his visits to Lyon or AC Milan? He also had the opportunity to take a new step under the tutelage of Pep Guardiola. It has to be seen what happens next. However, one thing seems to be confirmed: Lucas Paqueta really should stay on london land this summer…