West Ham sign Brazil international midfielder Lucas Paqueta from Lyon for £51m on a five-year deal; Paqueta becomes Hammers' eighth signing of the summer transfer window
Monday 29 August 2022 20:45, UK
West Ham have completed the signing of Brazil international midfielder Lucas Paqueta from Lyon for a club-record fee of around £51m.
The 24-year-old becomes David Moyes' eighth summer signing at the London Stadium, and trumps their previous record signing Sebastian Haller, who left the club only 18 months after arriving for £45m.
He signs on a five-year deal, with the option of a further year, and will wear the number 11 shirt.
Paqueta has 33 caps and seven goals for Brazil and has already played more than 100 games in Serie A and Ligue 1 since moving to AC Milan from Flamengo in 2018.
He reached double figures in both of his seasons at Lyon, and was chosen as the best overseas player in Ligue 1 for 2021/22, despite the club finishing eighth.
Paqueta was on the losing side against the Hammers last season, featuring in both legs of their quarter-final defeat in the Europa League.
"I am extremely happy to be here. I hope it's the beginning of an enjoyable journey. I hope my time here is successful," said Paqueta. "Last season, West Ham had a very good season and I hope they continue to enjoy more and more good seasons in my time at the club.
"I am excited to pull on the West Ham shirt and show the fans what I can do, to help my team-mates and the club."
South American football expert Tim Vickery:
"Lucas Paqueta is a very classy player. He'd be a wonderful asset to West Ham and to the Premier League because he has real left-footed class. He is an elegant attacking midfielder. He's so versatile. I've seen him playing for Brazil and fill three different positions in the same game reasonably well.
"He's really an attacking midfielder but he can also play up front. You can play him as a withdrawn winger, and deeper in midfield - although there is a problem there as sometimes he can give the ball away too close to his own goal because he's showboating.
"This is the one potential problem with him, which is why he's being linked with West Ham having not quite hit the expectations at AC Milan.
"There is a little bit of the petulant schoolboy about him. It would be a challenge of man-management for David Moyes. When you look at Brazil, he's an automatic choice. He has a sweet thing going with Neymar.
"The pair of them are on the same wavelength and if he can form some kind of similar relationship with those around him at West Ham, he can be a real asset to the club."
Who will be on the move this summer before the transfer window closes at 11pm on September 1?
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