Lucas Paqueta shock exit on cards at West Ham as secret meeting revealed

Lucas Paqueta could soon be on his way out of West Ham United as a new behind-the-scenes meeting comes to light.

Paqueta has continuously been linked with a move away from the London Stadium amid being investigated by the FA over breaches of betting rules.

There has been an increased interest from Brazilian clubs to take the 27-year-old back to South America after the aforementioned charges emerged.

Flamengo were notably credited with an interest in signing the midfielder towards the end of the winter transfer window.

Lucas Paqueta agent meets Flamengo supremo

The Brazilian club reportedly attempted to sign Paqueta on a loan-to-buy deal from West Ham, but they have not made any such moves, as per Vene Casagrande.

However, reporting via his YouTube channel (6 February), the reliable Brazilian revealed that one of Paqueta's representatives was at Flamengo's training ground Ninho do Urubu on Tuesday, 4 February.

There, the said agent met with Flamengo's football director Jose Boto and left the door open for his client to return to the Serie A club.

The Rio-based club are, therefore, keeping tabs on Paqueta's situation from afar.

Lucas Paqueta to leave West Ham?

West Ham had a quiet winter transfer window, with the loan signing of Evan Ferguson from Brighton being their only piece of business.

The Irons are likely to be more active in the summer in what will be Graham Potter's first full transfer window as their head coach.

This means players are expected to go in and out of the London Stadium and Paqueta could be one of the high-profile departures.

The Brazil international will undergo trial over his gambling charges in March and its result may affect what the East London outfit decide to do with him.

Should things go wrong, it might signal the end of Paqueta's footballing career in Europe and a return to Brazil might be the best - or only - option for him, with Botafogo also credited with an interest.

It appears his representatives are aware of it and that is perhaps why one of them floated the idea of the Hammers star returning to Flamengo.