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.”"

[Romfordboy]

How long before we start selling Brazil clothing..

[grasshopper]

"As a break from willtell shitting up this thread, positive news, Paqueta has signed."

[Crassus]

"Side No problem, I'm not the arbiter here, you and Will carry on cunting if you want But, if the confirmation is true, we have now done 200m Merkels, more than everyone bar Chelsea Not a guarantee of success, but fair play, someone is having a go and never thought I would see such a day"

[Crassus]

"In an effort to get this fred back on course marty feldman 7:32 Sun Aug 28 Re: Official Transfer Rumours and Gossip Thread Paquetas done . Lyon due to being listed on the stock exchange never announce players coming or going over the weekend. A Lyon fan on kumb called misko said that's how they do it . FOMB Read that excluding this signing we are 5th biggest net spend, globally, in this window, this takes us second with more signings on the card - blimey"

[Manuel]

The 'great' Lanzini. You gotta laugh.

[Willtell]

I can’t get Foo Fighters There goes my hero song off my mind….

[Manuel]

"The stats and his CV are there in black and white what he 'achieved' in the game and how 'great' he was and those stats don't lie no matter how you want to dress it up and argue. But yea he was a great player just because Messi talked him up once. What a legacy to put in his trophy cabinet and tell his grandchildren about. Lanzini is a nobody in the game, but as said he has been decent value for price paid."

[Side of Ham]

"Lanzini’s injuries are the main reason we’ll never know how good he could have been, but there was a reason those who went and saw him as ‘The Jewel’ saw there was a very good player in there and Messi looking forward to playing with him in the World Cup where he mentioned only him, is confirmation that he was a naturally very good player….and that kind of mugs off what any numpty on here might negatively think of him."

[theaxeman]

"Will be interesting to see how moyes plays with the extra quality we have now, I dont think we can be a side that gives up possession to play on the break with rice and paqueta in midfield also add Benrahma, Lanzini, Bowen and Scamacca who all seem pretty comfortable with the ball. Pressure is on moyes a bit id say."

[Willtell]

Lanzini is what he is. Whether or not he'd have ended up better if he hadn't had an injury in 2018 is neither here nor there. Lanzini won't be here for much longer but if the injury was so bad I wonder why we gave him a new 5 year contract on his return?

[Crassus]

"Manuel We will have to agree to disagree then mate Without being a dullard and trawling records, he won leagues with River and one of the big Brazilian sides, was a stellar youth highly regarded in S America and in S Europe, played and starred in the biggest games domestically He moved to the desert purely for financial reasons, like many young players there, at the behest of his agents/owners - all of this by his very early 20's I don't doubt his 'parking' at West Ham was seen as a stepping stone, one he would have taken had he not fucked his knee Messi being an advocate is evidence enough that he could play, the praise fulsome and I don't doubt he would of been a perfect foil, just as he was with Payet All academic and as they say, like arseholes, just an opinion that we both hold"

[Willtell]

"I'm looking forward to seeing Paqueta playing for us but I fear expectation levels are too high. He didn't make a good fit at Milan which is probably why many top clubs have avoided the risk. WH is in a different position and hopefully we will suit each other. Paqueta like Rice, has experienced failure. The readiness to fight his way back at Lyon with hard graft and ball winning is probably what made him attractive to Moyes. If Paqueta is a success like Payet was makes the next star signing easier. Will Moyes manage this successfully?"

[Sven Roeder]

Lanzini WAS excellent with Payet when he had someone on the same wavelength to play with. Was rumoured for a long time to be Liverpool's preferred replacement when Coutinho was going to Barcelona. The injury prior to the World Cup was a killer for his speed off the mark and turning. Looked finished for a couple of years but picked up .... before fading again. Cant see him as a first choice starter again

[Side of Ham]

"Injuries did for Lanzini, a lovely little player if he had someone to play off. He was looking excellent with Payet and then both of them got dirty bastard tackles which effectively fucked them linking up for a sustained period. Then Messi struck up a good playing relationship and he was looking forward to a World Cup finals when the big injury occurred. Had he gone to that and played well with Messi I doubt we would have kept him….."

[⚒️]

No doubt we’ll fail to register him in time to play on Wed.

[FOMB]

Looks like he can take a penalty so solves 1 problem straight away ?üòÇ

[Tomshardware]

"Manuel 12:24 Sun Aug 28 Agree he's never been 'great', started off well, 8 goals in his first season showed promise, but I will say he's scored some lovely goals in his time with us, City, Palace & leveller against Spurs."

[Manuel]

"Shorty - Yep, for what we paid and no silly wages he has been good value for sure."

[Alan]

Dharmesh Sheth @skysports_sheth Lucas Paqueta in London. Medical today. Personal terms agreed. Visa & work permit to be processed. Needs to be registered by midday Tuesday to feature against Tottenham on Wednesday. #WHUFC

[Alan]

Dharmesh Sheth @skysports_sheth Lucas Paqueta in London. Medical today. Personal terms agreed. Visa & work permit to be processed. Needs to be registered by midday Tuesday to feature against Tottenham on Wednesday. #WHUFC

[RBshorty]

Lanzini was bought in for potential. And it never panned out. But even with the injury. He's been worth the money.

[Nagel]

Last season only 3 teams scored more goals from outside the box than we did. Whether Paqueta becomes a good signing or not won't be decided by where he gets his goals from.

[Manuel]

"Crassus - Lanzini has never been a great player, or even close. He was playing in the desert when we picked him up. He only ever won 5 caps for his country, never played for a big European club, never played in the Champions League and never won anything, all because of one injury?? Take the specs off, mate. Laughable."

[iphammer]

"I would love us to spend big on someone that has pace, strength, and can shoot from outside the box with power. Watching a quick video of Paqueta most of his goals have been inside the box. If we don't change our playing style, he will be a pointless signing and a lot of money wasted. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rd1LIKCyE8"

[Takashi Miike]

"Lato 11:35 Sun Aug 28 yes, Declan shut him down during the first leg, have him very little time on the ball. second leg, he came on as a sub when the game was basically over"