Lucas Paqueta SIGNED

[Alan]

"Lucas Paqueta: Lost in Milan, reborn at Lyon – and now West Ham’s statement signing By James Horncastle From the mountains overlooking Rio de Janeiro you can, on a clear day, see a small island across the Guanabara Bay. It was here, in 1997, that the man set to become West Ham’s club-record signing, Lucas Tolentino Coelho da Lima, was born, a player better known by the name of his birthplace, the once-glamorous Ilha de Paqueta. The journey he embarked on to become a professional footballer began with his grandfather Mirao ushering him and his older brother onto a ferry to cross the water between their home and Rio de Janeiro, where Lucas Paqueta attended Flamengo’s Gavea academy and Matheus trained at Ninho, another of the club’s facilities. Paqueta has a tattoo on his forearm of a star and the letter “M” in recognition of the contribution his late grandfather made in making him who he is today; an established Brazil international upon whom clubs in Italy, France and England have lavished more than €100million (£84.8m; $100m) in transfer fees before his 25th birthday. The “Brazil premium” is still very much a thing, although just imagine what Paqueta would go for had he been born and raised on Canvey Island in Essex and called Luke Canvey. Presumably, he’d make Jack Grealish look cheap. But we digress. At Gavea, the boy off the boat impressed. Growing up on an island with no cars, Paqueta played uninterrupted for hours in the streets and on the beach. He had a rare touch and feel for the game. One of his youth coaches Ze Ricardo marvelled at Paqueta’s universal skill set. He was like every midfielder rolled into one. “He could develop into a No 5, 6, 7, 8, a No 10,” Ze Ricardo told France Football. “He was very intelligent. He knew how to position himself and was fearless.” But at 15, Paqueta was under-sized for his age. The growth spurt his peers experienced didn’t arrive and all of a sudden the star of Flamengo’s youth sector couldn’t get into the team anymore. Paqueta didn’t take it very well. He cried and was irritable. Maybe this was it? All those nights catching the last ferry, the 21-mile roundtrip with Mirao. All for what? To go back to being a tour guide on the island, a job Paqueta did for some extra pocket money in his spare time? His mother wouldn’t stand for it. She went down to the academy and kicked up a fuss. Flamengo came round to her point of view and drew up a bespoke plan for Paqueta. Targeted nutrition, a bit of power training and fitness work had the desired effect and he shot up, gaining about a foot in height. It was all worth it. Paqueta ran the show as Flamengo’s under-17s won the Copinha and when the club’s first-team coach Muricy Ramalho asked the academy chiefs if they had anyone for him, one teenager stood out. Not long after making his debut in the Rio state championship, Paqueta scored his first goal in the professional game. It was no ordinary goal either. Tricks in tight spaces and his knack for making a mark on big occasions — Paqueta scored in the 2017 Copa do Brasil and Copa Sudamericana finals — then quickly made him the darling of Flamengo fans. Among them was one of their former players, Leonardo, who was back at AC Milan as the club’s sporting director. After hanging up his boots, he had cut his teeth in recruitment working under former chief executive Adriano Galliani. As the only Brazilian in Milan’s old offices on Via Turati, the signings of Thiago Silva and Alexandre Pato were widely credited to him. One of Leonardo’s first moves upon returning to the club after leaving Paris Saint-Germain and trying his hand at coaching again with Antalyaspor was to attempt to sign the next big thing out of Brazil. A deal worth €35million was struck with Flamengo in the autumn of 2018 and Paqueta joined the following January. There were echoes of Pato’s arrival a little over a decade earlier and the nostalgia hit hard. Leonardo had accompanied Kaka to Paris to collect his Ballon d’Or in 2007 and, as he left, famously remarked he’d be back with Pato. Injuries ultimately stopped him from fulfilling his potential but the talent was obvious. Memories of the early Pato, along with the illustrious association between Brazil and the last great Milan sides, loaded tremendous expectation on Paqueta’s shoulders. The rainbow flick he performed on his Serie A debut against Genoa only added to it. Had Leonardo only gone and found the new Kaka? Fans at San Siro certainly hoped so. After all, this wasn’t 2003, when Kaka joined a Champions League-winning team and people wondered whether this preppy-looking kid from Sao Paulo would get a game amid competition from Manuel Rui Costa and Rivaldo. In 2019, Milan needed a saviour. The club hadn’t been in the Champions League for five years and would have gone to the wall had Elliott Management not repossessed it from Li Yonghong. The hope projected on Paqueta was that he might almost single-handedly make Milan elite again. Paqueta’s adaptation wasn’t easy. Whereas in the past there would have been a group of players like Dida, Serginho, Cafu, Thiago Silva, Pato and Kaka to help him settle in, by the time Paqueta arrived at Milanello there were no Brazilians left at the club. The second language at Milan these days is French, not Portuguese, and when Leonardo left six months after signing Paqueta, his protege felt isolated. Paqueta was only there a year, but the club went through three coaches. When he joined midway through the season, Rino Gattuso had already settled on his best team and couldn’t find a spot for him. Marco Giampaolo told Paqueta to be “less Brazilian and more concrete, less showy”. By the time Stefano Pioli got the job, the direction of travel was hard to reverse and the midfield player who benefited most from his appointment turned out to be Hakan Calhanoglu. Paqueta, in Pioli’s mind, needed to be “more incisive”. Internally, Milan were of the opinion they had overpaid Flamengo for what Paqueta was at the time. The €21million Lyon were prepared to pay for him in the late summer of 2020 was therefore considered something of a miracle and the 15 per cent sell-on Milan cleverly negotiated means they will get their money back and have a nice windfall ahead of the final week of the transfer window. There are no regrets, even though Lyon will make close to three times what Paqueta cost them. He has flourished in Ligue 1. “I put myself under a lot of pressure in Milan,” Paqueta reflected in L’Equipe. “Too much even. When I moved to France I told myself I didn’t have to put myself through that again. I just had to do my best. “Sometimes there isn’t a reason for failure. My time at Milan wasn’t extraordinary by any means, I probably achieved less than expected, but it served me well and made me a better player; a different, stronger player who rediscovered the essence of what he was at Flamengo. The pressure is still there but it doesn’t come from myself anymore.” In Lyon, Paqueta found another big club, just not one on the same scale as Milan. The environment was less demanding than San Siro and the league less tactically strait-jacketed than Serie A. Behind the transfer was another legend of the Brazilian game, the free-kick maestro Juninho Pernambucano, who had been enticed back to Lyon as the club’s sporting director to build a team mixing the best products of Europe’s finest academy with the technical refinement of his home nation, namely Paqueta, Bruno Guimaraes and Thiago Mendes. The team that reached the semi-finals of the 2020 Champions League under Rudi Garcia, upsetting Juventus and Manchester City along the way, evolved from an aggressive, transition-based 3-5-2 to a 4-3-3 which sought control through a neat possession game made possible thanks to the quintet of Brazilians, Houssem Aouar and Maxence Caqueret. It promised a lot and a 1-0 win away to Mauricio Pochettino’s PSG before Christmas showcased the elegant press-resistant side to Paqueta’s game as he helped Lyon relieve the pressure around their penalty area and get up the pitch. Paqueta offered glimpses of a complete midfielder, whose ability to disrupt opponents as they progressed towards Lyon’s goal married the aesthetic with the aggressive. On the ball, as his smarterscout profile below shows, he often kept his passing short and sharp, with neat interchange (link-up play volume 86 out of 99) rather than longer, searching balls upfield (progressive passing 27 out of 99). Those actions seemingly kept possession at an above-average rate compared with other central attacking midfielders (ball retention ability 59 out of 99). Off the ball, Paqueta’s ability to disrupt opponents with his high volume of defensive actions such as tackles and blocks (disrupting opposition moves 98 out of 99) was also highly effective in preventing opponents from progressing towards Lyon’s goal (defending impact 73 out of 99). Halfway through his first campaign in Ligue 1, L’Equipe named him in their team of the season so far. Once the polemic subsided about Tite prematurely handing Lucas Paqueta the Brazil No 10 shirt for a friendly against Argentina in 2019 — a decision Rivaldo took as a lack of respect for Rivelino, Zico and Ronaldinho — he established himself as a regular. His versatility means he will probably start at the World Cup. “He has the talent to be one of the top players,” Emerson Palmieri told The Athletic earlier this summer. The Euro 2020 winner spent last season on loan at Lyon and will be reunited with Paqueta after joining West Ham from Chelsea. “He’s still young and I believe we have to have patience with him because sometimes youngsters have ups and downs.” The oscillating performances Palmieri touches upon refers to the Lyonnais perception of Paqueta as an absolute joy to watch on his day. But he lacks consistency. Garcia felt he needed to show more killer instinct in his passing rather than playing simple, short and sideways. The team also went backwards in Paqueta’s time, declining from Champions League semi-finalists to no Champions League football at all in back-to-back years. Last season under Peter Bosz was the worst the club has experienced in a quarter of a century. Either the team underperformed or wasn’t as good as people thought. Guimaraes was sold to Newcastle in January to offset some of the lost earnings from missing out on the Champions League and Lyon have gone back to players they can rely on like Alexandre Lacazette and Corentin Tolisso. More substance, less style. Paqueta was ready for a new challenge but the lacklustre showings he put in over the second half of the last campaign also made Lyon open to moving on. Romain Faivre can replace him between the lines and Jeff Reine Adelaide’s return from injury covers Lyon in midfield. A fee of up to €60million from West Ham is frankly too good to turn down and would make Paqueta the club’s most lucrative sale after Tanguy Ndombele. West Ham fans will be hoping they get more bang for their buck than Tottenham did for their record signing who returned to Lyon on loan last season and is now at Napoli. “His quality is there for all to see,” Palmieri said of Paqueta. “He’s a dedicated guy, someone who is obsessed with winning games and competing for titles. He has everything he needs to develop further. I think he has a brilliant future ahead of him.”"

[Crassus]

"I remember the pre injury Lanzini well, great player, approaching his peak His contract was running down as he went to the WC, Messi was stating he was the player he wanted to play aside Absolutely no doubt he would play and then leave for a big club - then the injury fucked it all He has been a good player for us, and managed to adjust his game post injury but like him, time is fast approaching to make the call in self interest Cheers Manny son, thanks for the memories"

[ludo21]

"Agree with the point that presumably Moyes is getting Paqueta in to change our playing style... Dean Ashton on Talksport this morning saying that our playing style has become very predictable and teams know how to play against us. Hopefully Paqueta will change that and add a badly needed extra dimension. I have read that at Lyon, due to his style of play, he is prone to lose the ball in dangerous positions which will probably be more likely in the PL so the first few weeks could be a bit dicey, but I'm confident that this will be a fantastic signing."

[Far Cough]

I think Lanzini has the most wanted squad number.

[SurfaceAgentX2Zero]

How many weeks at his villa in Cannes will he be offering Cresswell for his shirt number?

[Lato]

Does anyone remember how he played against us last season? I don't believe he played at all in the 2nd leg!

[RBshorty]

"Damming with faint praise. How, very French. Monsieur Laurens.!"

[LAF]

"Let’s all hope that Paqueta is the spark we’ve been missing since the Payet days. Lanzini arrived and played in the shadow of Payet and then went on to shine for a season when Payet fecked off. This helped to get him into the Argentina squad where he got that horrible injury and was never the same player after. My concern re Paqueta is how well he’ll adapt to the English game and his new surroundings,"

[goose]

"Julien Laurens @LaurensJulien ¬? Follow Lucas Paqueta is a great player and a fantastic signing for West Ham. However, Moyes will have to change the way the team plays to accommodate Paqueta otherwise it‚Äôs not going to work. 3:26 PM ¬? Aug 27, 2022 That‚Äôs the point you‚Äôd assume - Moyes wants him because it allows us to change how we play. We need some in the middle who can cope with the press and keep the ball, someone who can pick a pass in the final third."

[Manuel]

"Yep, never really rated him, but don't let it upset you. I'm okay with your opinion. As for winning convincingly and battering sides, lol. I don't know if you follow our results but we haven't ''battered'' anyone for a couple of years, fella. I don't know what it is you are drinking, but after a couple more I reckon you'll have us winning the league!"

[jfk]

As for these fucking idiots saying Moyes should go well who do suggest we replace him with??? We all know Moyes fucked up massively dithering but now there’s no excuses get the starting 11 right and we’ll batter mid table clubs and soon rise up the table. Todays game is a must win im confident we’ll win convingly.

[jfk]

"Really hope we get this young talent in looks likely but …….. According to some (Manuel) Lanzini (South American)was nothing special ?????? I beg to differ,when we signed Lanzini 2014 ?? He was by a mile our most creative player,unfortunately had a very bad injury but although now in more recent years never really fully recovered (loads similar never do) but shows flashes of genius (yid goal) being a prime example. I’m of the opinion Lanzini could have been a lclub legend the fella oozed talent before a crippling injury. With that in mind some South Americans can adapt easily and shine hope this fella comes and does the business ."

[scouse kid]

Is now in London according to claret and drunk

[master]

"Really good player, definitely exciting. Real question marks over whether or not Moyes can get the best out of him though. Will he take all the creativity and spark out his game for the discipline he evidently values most?"

[Takashi Miike]

"I hadn't watched him this season, so apologies to Stubbo for my bollocks on the transfer thread. it looks like the Lyon manager (no idea if he's their new coach?) has changed system this year and Lucas has been playing on the right side of a midfield three in a 4-3-3, rather than the 4-2-3-1 they seemed to use against us. exactly the formation id love moyes to give a go but as been said, probably less games for people like lanzini & soucek. it seems to have suited Lyon this season, winning the first two games"

[Manuel]

"exile - I know where he plays, and besides I wasn't linking Soucek with Paqueta at all. I only mentioned Paqueta as we only concentrate on one signing at a time. If Gallagher comes in the Soucek could go is what I'm saying, but just generally I think Moyes wants rid of him."

[Manuel]

"exile - I know where he plays, and besides I wasn't linking Soucek with Paqueta at all. I only mentioned Paqueta as we only concentrate on one signing at a time. If Gallagher comes in the Soucek could go is what I'm saying, but just generally I think Moyes wants rid of him."

[stubbo]

"@. The exile. He plays as a 10 and also as a true CM. I'd suggest if Moyes moves to a 3-4-3 it's Soucek who will miss out with Paqueta in the side. His tackling and defensive stats are actually very good. Agreed in a 4-2-3-1 it's whoever plays centrally attacking who will miss out. But I think we need to move away from this idea of a 1st XI...we are building a first XI squad of different equally valid options. Plus with 5 subs it's very much a squad game. Plenty of room for Paqueta, Soucek et al."

[tonka]

Justin P wrote... Re: Lucas Paqueta Hungarian microwave meal Paqueta Rice and Soucek Uncle Ben's Paqueta Rice with Cress well

[the exile]

Manuel - Paqueta plays as a no.10 so I don't see how he threatens Soucek's place. It's Lanzini and Fornals who should be worried.

[Justin P]

Hungarian microwave meal Paqueta Rice and Soucek

[ted fenton]

That would make sense Manuel.

[Manuel]

"ted - What I can see happening after Paqueta is confirmed is we will try and get both Gallagher and Broja, try to offload Soucek and possibly Coventry. I don't fancy us to get either of them though, and have also read that if Gallacher does leave Chelsea it will only be back to Palace."

[ted fenton]

I'd still love Conor Gallagher in our squad I thought he was the nuts for Palace. One can dream ;-)

[boleyn8420]

"Still think it's funny our midfield will be Paqueta Rice. We should also buy Ben White. Commentators dream 'Paqueta White, Rice Goal for West Ham. Nah that last bit about a goal is pure fiction"

[BRANDED]

This spending was needed if we have any aspirations. I'm guessing the influence of the Czech is starting to show or the nearing of the 2023 date.