WEST HAM LOSES MIDFIELDER PAQUETA TO $35 MILLION FLAMENGO TRANSFER

Lucas Paqueta was acquired by Flamengo from West Ham for £36.5 million.

Paqueta has a contract with his childhood club that runs through December 2030. A few hours before West Ham issued a brief statement expressing gratitude to the midfield player, Flamengo made the announcement. After verifying that he had been granted permission to have a medical examination, the Premier League team said they reluctantly approved his transfer request.

After being exonerated of spot-fixing charges that may have ended his career, Paqueta told West Ham he wanted to go back home to Brazil for personal and family reasons.

Since then, Paqueta has stated that he declined offers from Europe because he preferred to be in Brazil for "mental health" and "regain peace." The 28-year-old is back in Rio de Janeiro, where he started his career, after joining West Ham from Lyon in 2022 for a club record sum of about £51 million.

With 23 goals and 15 assists in 139 games, Paqueta's tenure in East London comes to an end with his departure. The Brazil international helped West Ham end their 40-year trophy drought by setting up Jarrod Bowen's iconic goal in the team's 2023 Conference League final victory over Fiorentina.

Analysis by Kaveh Solhekol, chief journalist for Sky Sports News: By paying £36.5 million to get a Brazilian international who is still in his prime from a Premier League team, Flamengo is completely changing the game of football. The South American and Brazilian champions are Flamengo. With £216.4 million in income last year, they are as wealthy as many Premier League teams. Additionally, they received £20 million for participating in the expanded Club World Cup last summer, where they defeated Chelsea, the eventual winners, in the group stages. Additionally, they earned roughly £60 million from player sales, which is a common way for Brazilian clubs to make money

"Private investors putting money into Brazilian clubs also means the top clubs can buy players from abroad rather than just sell their prized assets. Paqueta only wanted to return to Flamengo, the club where he spent 12 years from when he was 10. Flamengo's league season starts on Thursday, and soon Paqueta will be able to swap the London Stadium for the world-famous Maracana, and the lower reaches of the Premier League for life at the top of the Campeonato Serie A."