David Moyes rejected Lucas Paqueta request at West Ham amid advanced talks with Manchester City
West Ham have nearly parted ways with Lucas Paqueta on a number of occasions.
It looked as if Paqueta would be leaving West Ham for Aston Villa this summer after strong links emerged ahead of deadline day at the London Stadium.
Graham Potter was staunch against selling the Brazil international, with any rumours of an exit scuppered when Paqueta scored for West Ham against Nottingham Forest.
Paqueta’s celebration at the City Ground told fans all they needed to know, but things could have been so much different in years gone by.
This has now seen fresh details come to light, which have raised questions around David Moyes, as Paqueta was heavily linked to Manchester City over two years ago.
David Moyes’ choice hampered Lucas Paqueta’s career
There is no getting away from the fact that the attacking midfielder is one of the Irons’ best and most technically gifted players.
The 28-year-old has struggled to showcase his qualities in E20, but now pressure of a trial is off his shoulders after Paqueta was cleared of any alleged betting breaches by the FA.
As a result of this, the written reasons for the independent Regulatory Commission’s decisions around the Brazilian have since been published by the FA on 3 September.
In the 314-page document, details have emerged surrounding the so-called “relevant match four”, which came against Bournemouth, where Paqueta was booked for a bizarre handball.
Relevant matches in the Paqueta case:
- vs Leicester City on 12 November 2022
- vs Aston Villa on 12 March 2023
- vs Leeds United on 21 May 2023
- vs AFC Bournemouth on 12 August 2023
The report has revealed that the number 10 asked David Moyes to miss the clash at the Vitality due to transfer talks with Manchester City being “well advanced”.
The Scottish head coach turned down this request, with the published document saying that, “Mr Moyes had told him that he would try and substitute him as early as possible, depending on how the game was going for West Ham.”
Paqueta confirmed that this conversation had taken place, but he ultimately went on to pick up the suspect yellow card with 94 minutes on the clock.
Lucas Paqueta must now prove himself at West Ham
The clash against Forest seemed to be a fresh start for the former Lyon man after so long without a truly excellent performance.
Getting on the scoresheet in front of the Hammers’ faithful was a perfect way to prove his allegiance to the East London club ahead of deadline day.
Paqueta needs to now take that raw emotion and continue to utilise it as part of his game, either under Potter or another manager at the London Stadium.
It would have been interesting to see where his career would have gone if he had joined Man City, but ultimately Moyes made the decision he thought was right at the time.
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