After losing Kevin De Bruyne to injury, the Premier League champions made a low-ball offer of around £60million for the Brazilian in early August, hoping he could fill the creative void.
West Ham, having already cashed in on Declan Rice, were in a position to drive the bargain hard, but there was reluctant acceptance that losing Paqueta would be inevitable were Pep Guardiola to get the chequebook out and his claws in.
But then, of course, everything went quiet, until it emerged that Paqueta was — and still is — the subject of an FA investigation into possible betting breaches related to a number of suspicious bets placed in Brazil on the midfielder to pick up yellow cards.
Denne historien er fra September 15, 2023-utgaven av Evening Standard.
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Denne historien er fra September 15, 2023-utgaven av Evening Standard.
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