Lucas Paqueta claim at West Ham United on talkSPORT has hosts in complete agreement
Natalie Sawyer and Tony Cascarino agreed Lucas Paqueta needs to improve his performances under Julen Lopetegui at West Ham United.
Cascarino has already run the rule on the Brazilian for his demeanour in the 1-1 draw against Brentford last weekend as he was replaced by Crysencio Summerville for the final 15 minutes after offering nothing on the pitch for the Hammers.
Sawyer and Cascarino discussed Paqueta live on talkSPORT [5 October, 7:57am] ahead of the match against Ipswich Town on Saturday [5 October] at the London Stadium and were in complete agreement on the midfielder.
Cascarino said: “Paqueta looks completely a shadow of the player so far this season that we know he’s capable of.”
Sawyer agreed: “We saw in the Brentford v West Ham game – he looked so disappointed when he was taken off in that game.
“Whether he was just disappointed to be taken off or just disappointed in general about the whole performance, he looked disinterested in all fairness.”
Lucas Paqueta needs to step up for West Ham United
Lopetegui is facing a must-win clash at West Ham only seven matches into his tenure in East London and the Spaniard desperately needs his players to step up.
The Irons sit fourteenth in the Premier League table, only two points clear of the relegation places, so to say the start to life under the new boss has been underwhelming would be a massive overstatement.
However, in the face of newly-promoted Ipswich comes the best opportunity for the Hammers, after a tough fixture run, to pick up only their second win of the season and the first for Lopetegui on home soil after three consecutive defeats at the London Stadium.
The form of Paqueta is rapidly becoming a cause of concern. The Brazilian talisman has been non-existent for the Irons since his penalty in the opening day 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa and has struggled to find his place in the side when sharing duties as the number 10 and on the flanks with Mohammed Kudus.
Manchester City were willing to sanction a big-money move for the midfielder before the Football Association conducted a spot-fixing investigation into the Hammers man, and he must find a way to rediscover that from under Lopetegui.
Why Paqueta has suffered such a steep decline is anyone’s guess. West Ham must focus on how they find a way for him to thrive once again in East London.
If he cannot produce a stellar performance against newly-promoted opposition, serious questions will be raised on his long-term future with the Hammers.
In other West Ham news, Darren Bent makes an ‘alarming’ Hammers admission ahead of the clash against Ipswich Town.
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