EX-REF HACKETT: LUCAS PAQUETA NEEDS PSYCHOLOGIST AFTER RED CARD MELTDOWN
Former PGMOL head Keith Hackett says West Ham must hire a psychologist for Lucas Paqueta after his sarcastic applause and red card vs. Liverpool, calling his actions "childish."
West Ham needs to give Lucas Paqueta some serious support after his sending-off in the 2-0 loss to Liverpool.
That's according to Keith Hackett, an ex-FIFA referee and former head of PGMOL, who told Football Insider that Darren England shares some blame for Paqueta's dismissal at the London Stadium.
Captain Jarrod Bowen didn't pull Paqueta away from the ref. Paqueta, 28, was initially booked for a foul on Dominik Szoboszlai and then sarcastically applauded as he left the field.
Paqueta had just returned from a suspension after accumulating five yellow cards in the league when he got two quick bookings for arguing with the referee.
Hackett has suggested before that Nicolas Jackson needed a psychologist at Chelsea after his red card issues before he moved to Bayern Munich.
Hackett thinks Paqueta could benefit from the same kind of help, especially after the FA investigated him for betting allegations over the past couple of years.
He was cleared, but Paqueta still blamed the authorities for his mental health in a heated social media post. Some fans have pushed back against his claims.
Nuno Espirito Santo will be without Paqueta for at least three games, but his sarcastic applause could lead to a longer ban.
Hackett, speaking exclusively to Football Insider on The Final Whistle, said, “If I were the manager, I’d stop his wages and say, ‘This isn’t good for the team.’” And it’s not.
It’s petty and childish, and he was never going to win that argument. Teams prepare, and they’ll know each player's attitude and how they react.
It’s up to his manager first. Get him to a sports psychologist to talk about pressure, body language, and controlling his emotions. If he feels like he has a chip on his shoulder, how do you fix that?
He went right up to the referee, leaving him no choice. The referee made the right call. It’s up to the club to stop this from happening.
Applauding the referee's decision will only result in a longer ban.
AWONIYI DOUBLE LEAVES NOTTINGHAM FOREST ON THE VERGE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SAFETY
Nottingham Forest moved closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Chelsea, while West Ham fell into the relegation zone after Spurs won.
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Nottingham Forest came out of the weekend looking pretty safe after pulling off an impressive 3-1 win at Chelsea. They’re almost clear of the relegation mess. Tottenham’s big away win at Aston Villa shook things up too, and now West Ham are back in the bottom three, running out of time faster than ever.
Forest have stepped up just when they needed to, leaving West Ham and Tottenham behind with a string of solid performances. Honestly, no one saw this coming, especially since Vitor Pereira shuffled his lineup with eight changes, fresh off a Europa League win against Aston Villa.
Even so, Forest were ahead within 90 seconds, thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s quick strike. By the 15th minute, Igor Jesus calmly buried a penalty after Malo Gusto’s reckless foul in the box. Chelsea had a chance to get back in it, but Cole Palmer wasted a penalty right before the break after a scary head collision involving Jesse Derry.
Awoniyi doubled down and scored again early in the second half, pushing Forest six points ahead of West Ham with just three games left.
West Ham’s weekend started badly; they looked flat and lost to Brentford. Things got worse Sunday night when Tottenham pulled off their first back-to-back Premier League wins since August 2025, beating a heavily rotated Aston Villa side 2-1.
Forest is now out of West Ham’s reach, or almost. Tottenham’s still close enough for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team to worry, but with three tough games coming up, Spurs could stay up even without another win, unless West Ham digs deep and pulls off something unexpected before their home finale against Leeds.
Right now, Forest can practically taste safety. Spurs finally see a way out after weeks of struggle. As for West Ham, they’re left hoping for a miracle, a last-minute twist to dodge the drop.
CESC FABREGAS CONFIRMS INTEREST IN PREMIER LEAGUE RETURN AMID CHELSEA'S MANAGER SEARCH
As Chelsea searches for a new manager, Cesc Fabregas breaks his silence on his future at Como and his Premier League ambitions.
Cesc Fabregas recalls exactly how a conversation with Jose Mourinho prompted him to join Chelsea, despite having the opportunity to return to Arsenal.
After winning six trophies in just three seasons, the Spanish World Cup winner left Barcelona for the second time in 2014. That summer, Fabregas made a move back to the Premier League, signing with Chelsea for about €33 million.
He already knew English football well. Fabregas had arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from Barcelona in 2003 and made 212 Premier League appearances for them. When he decided to leave Barcelona, Manchester City also wanted him, but Chelsea convinced him, mostly thanks to Mourinho.
Talking with talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings on YouTube, Fabregas laid out how it all happened. “Honestly, when I made up my mind to leave Barcelona, my first thought was just to go back to Arsenal. They had this buyback clause; they had two weeks to use it after I told them I was leaving. They knew about it but didn’t take it. That surprised me a little, but in the end, I had to think about my career. I was 27, at the peak of my career, and I wanted to continue performing and winning trophies. City and Chelsea were both options.
“But when Mourinho spoke to me, that was it. He showed me his plans for the team and told me about Diego Costa, Courtois, and Filipe Luis and how, with those guys, we’d win the league. He was right, by the way. We won both the Premier League and the Carling Cup.”
Fabregas wasted no time winning over Chelsea fans. On his debut at Burnley, he set up two goals, including a stunning assist for Andre Schurrle. He finished his first season at Chelsea with five goals and 24 assists, along with Premier League and League Cup medals.
Things dipped the next season. Fabregas got just 15 goal contributions, and Chelsea slipped all the way to tenth. But when Antonio Conte took charge in 2016-17, they bounced back, and Fabregas picked up another league title.
He added an FA Cup win in 2018, his second, after his earlier one with Arsenal, and left for Monaco a few months later. His last Chelsea match came in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. When he got subbed off, he couldn’t hold back tears.
Chelsea supporters still sing about him; that “Oh, Fabregas is magic...” chant sticks around. And with his name in the conversation for a possible return, maybe they haven’t seen the last of him yet.
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