West Ham United ‘worries’ that behind scenes move could signal Lucas Paqueta exit amid Newcastle interest
Lucas Paqueta has changed his agent, sparking worries he might be looking to leave West Ham along with Gianluca Scamacca, according to Claret & Hugh.
The £35.5million [Sky Sports] Italian striker has been heavily linked to a return to Serie A, with Roma at the front of the queue, since he signed with new agents [Fabrizio Romano, 2 April] after his previous representation broke off the relationship just over a month earlier [Fabrizio Romano, 28 February].
And now his Brazilian teammate and club record £51million signing from the same window [Sky Sports] has also switched to new representation from his home country, right at the time that £100million-plus captain Declan Rice is set to move.
Claret & Hugh report that “various” teams are interested in 25-year-old Paqueta, after Fichajes.net reported on 21 June that Newcastle were ready to offer €70million [£60million] for him.
According to the latest update: “Given that Scamacca has been absent from the Irons side almost since the time he changed agents there are worries that the pair of them may be looking towards the Hammers exit door.”
Concern?
It wouldn’t be a great look to lose both your major attacking signings after just one season, and when your outright star Rice is finally on the move it would leave major holes to fill, especially with Thomas Soucek for sale as well.
But there has been suggestion that Scamacca isn’t actually going anywhere, so in light of the fact that there has been nowhere near the amount of attention on a Paqueta exit yet the agent move might mean nothing.
Players often do switch when they are looking for a new contract or a transfer, but it isn’t set in stone that one follows the other.
Until West Ham accept a bid for either player they won’t be going anywhere either way, with the same true of Rice for now as Arsenal have discovered.
David Moyes is going to have plenty of work to do to in the market this summer as it is, and while Paqueta got off to an inauspicious start to life at the London Stadium he became more key as the season went on, and it was his assist that set Jarrod Bowen free to score the winner in the Europa Conference League final.
So the manager is sure to not want to lose him this summer, but for now it is difficult to tell if there is just smoke or fire behind the latest move.
In other West Ham news, personal terms have been agreed as the Hammers remain in the race to sign a veteran international.