PREMIER LEAGUE
Manchester City approach West Ham for Lucas Paquetá: how much is he worth?
The Brazilian midfielder has shone since his move to West Ham, and now it seems Pep Guardiola is keen on the player.
What would you do if money rained from the sky? Spend it, of course! Never-ending wads of cash continue to fall at PremierLeagueWorld© and now not only notes but huge bundles of climate-change-infused-super-weather is throwing down hailstones of spending power to every club.
And the biggest, scariest monster of them all who inhabits this world is Manchester City, who look to have gathered up a pile of cash and are ready to fire it at West Ham United in exchange for Brazilian midfielder, Lucas Paquetá.
How much do West Ham want for Paquetá?
The Athletic, who broke the story, are reporting that West Ham do not want to sell the player, and Sky Sports say that the offer was “in no way deemed acceptable” and that the club “will not begin to even consider selling Lucas Paqueta to Manchester City for less than £85 million”, although the player’s head “has been turned”.
The 25-year-old moved to the Premier League in 2022 after impressive spells in Europe with AC Milan and Lyon, and now it seems that Pep Guardiola has placed his magnifying glass on the floppy hair of the player. Paquetá has shone since he touched down in London for West Ham and of course Manchester City are in need of another midfielder after signing Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea earlier in the summer.
The midfielder was a key part of West Ham United’s historic season in which they won the UEFA Conference League, beating Fiorentina 1-2 with a last-minute goal from Bowen in the final - thanks to a fantastic assist from Paquetá. He played in a midfield with Declan Rice, who has now moved to Arsenal, so a departure from the Brazilian would signal a huge shift in the squad of the team that finished the 2022/23 Premier League season in 14th place.
How much have Manchester City offered West Ham?
As of yet, it appears that they haven’t offered anything. However, that could change. Reports coming from ferocious Tweeter - sorry, Xeeter - Fabrizio Romano, say that the Manchester club have approached West Ham with a verbal offer of a “£70 million package”, which was promptly rejected. The club are expected to go back in again for the player with an improved offer.
Does Paquetá have a release clause at West Ham?
The player is said to have a release clause of £85 million, but it is not active this summer, coming into play only from June 2024. According to Romano, “Paquetá would love to join Man City but West Ham have no intention to accept £70m fee discussed this week”, so it remains to be seen when the treble winners try their luck once again.
