West Ham have actually made profit on Lucas Paqueta after new transfer reveal
Lucas Paqueta’s exit from West Ham United has now been confirmed after weeks of speculation.
Paqueta has moved back to Brazil and rejoined former side Flamengo, after the East London outfit accepted a bid of £36.5million.
The 28-year-old spent three-and-a-half years at the London Stadium, scoring 16 goals in 110 Premier League appearances for the Hammers.
He did not feature in any of West Ham’s last three games, wins over QPR, Tottenham, and Sunderland, as he pushed through his departure.
West Ham have booked £25m profit from Lucas Paqueta sale
West Ham brought in Paqueta from French side Olympique Lyon back in the summer of 2022 for a reported fee of £51m.
The midfielder is still the Hammers’ record signing, and certainly lived up to his price tag in parts of his spell in East London.
Most memorably, Paqueta got the assist for Jarrod Bowen’s winner in the 2023 Conference League final, as West Ham beat Fiorentina 2-1 in Prague.
According to former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan, despite Nuno Espirito Santo’s side officially making a £15m loss on Paqueta, they actually made a profit overall.
Speaking live on talkSPORT on 29 January, Jordan explained that Paqueta would only have been valued at around £12m on the West Ham books, so the Hammers essentially made a profit of just under £25m.
He said: “He’s been there for three years, and he’s probably now valued at about £12million on their books.
“They’ve sold him for around £36.5m, so they’ve booked a commercial profit of about £25m.
“They’ve lost some money on cash terms, because they bought him for £51m and sold him for £36.5m, but in profit terms they’ve booked a £25m profit.”
How will West Ham replace Lucas Paqueta?
Paqueta has been a key figure for West Ham over the last three and a half seasons, playing the majority of games across all competitions.
However, in the last three weeks, while the Brazilian has been out of the squad, Nuno’s side has dramatically picked up their form.
West Ham’s 3-1 win over Sunderland last Saturday was further proof that they already have the players to cope without Paqueta.
Mateus Fernandes is one man in particular who could benefit from the midfielder’s departure.
Fernandes has really stepped up in the past few games, and Hammers fans will hope his good form continues for the rest of the season.
Stay up to date this winter with our West Ham transfer tracker. Click to see every done deal at the London Stadium, plus expert reaction from our team of writers.