As per the information provided by Santi Aouna, Manchester City has reached an agreement with West Ham star Lucas Paqueta regarding personal terms in preparation for a potential summer transfer.
Through the use of Twitter on April 8th, a journalist from Foot Mercato revealed that the Brazilian superstar is currently in possession of a long-term deal at the Etihad Stadium, despite the fact that negotiations between the teams are not currently taking place.
City came very close to signing the former Lyon player during the summer of 2017, but the deal was ultimately derailed when it was discovered that an inquiry was being conducted into alleged violations of betting rules.
Aouna Paqueta’s representatives, on the other hand, anticipate that the Hammers and the treble-winning team will arrive at an agreement by the time the season comes to a close.
According to the story that accompanies Foot Mercato, the two clubs had previously been on the verge of reaching an agreement that would have been somewhere between City’s best offer of €101 million (£86.6 million) and the Irons’ higher request of €110 million (£94.3 million). Pep Guardiola’s team is still interested in the West Ham ace.
West Ham star set to seal Etihad switch this year?
Considering how close Paqueta seemingly came to leaving the London Stadium at the start of the season it always seemed plausible that it was a move that could be resurrected in the future.
If City’s subsequent move for Matheus Nunes hasn’t proven sufficient then it looks fairly likely that for the second summer running a star man could make a big-money exit, especially as the betting investigation doesn’t appear set to get in the way, after Declan Rice’s £105m move to Arsenal last year [Sky Sports, 17 July].
If Paqueta does go then it is going to leave West Ham with even more attacking business to get done since there is currently plenty of need in forward areas.
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The 26-year-old’s eight goals and seven assists in all competitions this year might not appear absolutely spectacular, but his all-round game has been essential on top of the numbers.
And with the attritional nature of watching West Ham under David Moyes sometimes only mitigated by the skill of the Brazilian international, his exit would leave a significant vacuum to fill.
The Irons should at least earn a significant fee from him, but it will need to be reinvested wisely and a lot of it will depend on the futures of Moyes and Tim Steidten, and whatever situation remains between them as this season finishes.
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Jonathan Jonathan