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£35 MILLION: FLAMENGO LAUNCH IMPROVED BID FOR WEST HAM STAR LUCAS PAQUETá

Lucas Paquetá is pushing for a £35m move to Flamengo as West Ham battle relegation. Discover why Nuno dropped him for the Sunderland game.

£35 Million: Flamengo launch improved bid for West Ham star Lucas Paquetá
Flamengo are getting the bargain of the decade for a £35m Paquetá

Flamengo has put in a bid worth up to £35 million ($46.9m) for West Ham’s Lucas Paquetá. They’re offering £30m up front in instalments, plus another £5m in add-ons, hoping that’s enough to get the deal over the line for the Brazilian international. West Ham wants £40m, but folks at Flamengo believe they can work something out before the transfer window shuts on February 2.

Paquetá has 18 months left on his West Ham contract, but he’s itching to head back to Brazil now. He’s already agreed on personal terms with Flamengo—his old club—through December 2029.

At first, West Ham wanted £44m for Paquetá, but after talking things over with their shareholders earlier this month, they dropped their price to £40m.

Manager Nuno Espírito Santo really doesn’t want to lose him in the middle of the season. He sees the 28-year-old as a nailed-on starter, someone they need if they’re going to avoid relegation.

Paquetá joined West Ham from Lyon in the summer of 2022. He’s got four goals and one assist from 18 Premier League games so far this season.

Espírito Santo spoke with Paquetá this week and gets why he wants out, both for personal and professional reasons. Still, with all this up in the air, Paquetá isn’t in the squad for Saturday’s home game against Sunderland. In fact, he hasn’t played since January 6 and missed the back-to-back wins over QPR and Spurs.

“He’s not going to be in the squad for this match,” Espírito Santo said at his Thursday press conference. “Everyone knows how I feel about Lucas, but we have to deal with this day by day and find a solution. Everything that happened before just made things harder, but now that’s in the past. I hope Lucas and the club can figure something out so we can move forward.”

West Ham sits 18th in the league right now, five points from safety.

CONOR GALLAGHER CONFIRMED AS "VITAL" STARTER FOR SPURS FOLLOWING BENTANCUR’S INJURY LAYOFF

Conor Gallagher proved the doubters wrong against Man City. Discover why his €40m move to Tottenham is finally paying off for Spurs.

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Conor Gallagher secured first Spurs assist as Tottenham snatched a point at City

Chelsea and Atletico Madrid both decided Conor Gallagher wasn’t worth the trouble. At Chelsea, he had his moments—Pochettino liked him, but the fans never really warmed up. When Chelsea shipped him off to Atletico, it made sense. Enzo Fernandez stepped up, took over Gallagher’s role, and fit in perfectly next to Caicedo, with Cole Palmer adding that extra spark up front.

Things didn’t get much better for Gallagher in Spain. He barely got a chance at Atleti, lost his spot in the starting eleven, and pretty much ended up on the transfer list before anyone had time to blink. Interest was lukewarm at best until the winter window rolled around. Aston Villa wanted him and went after him pretty aggressively, but then Tottenham swooped in late. Spurs needed someone to patch up the midfield after Bentancur’s injury, so they just paid up—40 million euros, no hesitation.

His start at Tottenham? Rough. Honestly, that was to be expected. He’d played well at Palace before, but after his struggles at Atleti, he needed time to adjust. Sitting on the bench in Spain didn’t do him any favours.

Then Gallagher showed up. People doubted whether he could really add creativity and move the ball forward for Spurs, so his early struggles got people worried. But then came the 2-2 draw against Manchester City. He suddenly looked like the player both Ange Postecoglou and Thomas Frank were so desperate to sign.

Against City, Gallagher flipped the script. He set up a crucial assist, drove play forward on the dribble, and kept drawing fouls—everything the Spurs needed. Defensively, he was all over the place in a good way: two tackles, three interceptions, a full 90 minutes, and a huge part of the Spurs clawing their way back into the game.

Tottenham fans loved it. They saw the effort, the attitude, and the hunger to win. Gallagher just wouldn’t quit, and in that second half, he, Xavi Simons, Pape Matar Sarr, Destiny Udogie, and Dominic Solanke ran the show. Four of those guys have been carrying Spurs lately, so Gallagher is fitting right in with them. That’s a pretty good sign he’s going to work out just fine in North London.

AC MILAN MEDICAL FAILURE: THE HIDDEN KNEE INJURY THAT CRUSHED MATETA’S £30M MOVE

Jean-Philippe Mateta's £30m move to AC Milan is OFF. Discover why a failed medical has put his France World Cup dreams in jeopardy.

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Mateta’s "dream move" suddenly turned toxic.

Jean Philippe-Mateta’s got a real headache right now. The Crystal Palace striker just watched his £30 million dream move to AC Milan blow up at the last minute, all because a knee problem showed up during his medical.

The thing is, Mateta’s been carrying this injury for a while. Now he’s stuck: should he go under the knife and try to recover in time for the World Cup? He wants to make the France squad this summer, but nothing’s guaranteed. Even if he has surgery, there’s no telling if he’ll be fit enough—or have enough time on the pitch—to convince Didier Deschamps he deserves a spot.

The injury’s been dragging him down anyway. It’s messing with his form and his game time, and he’s worried he won’t get a real shot at proving himself for France if he isn’t at his best.

It’s tough because he’s coming off a fantastic year at Palace. FA Cup winner, big goals, helped the club reach Europe—it’s been a dream run. But now he might have to go back to Selhurst Park, even though he’s made it clear he’s had enough and wants out.

Honestly, it feels like only a matter of time before he leaves. His contract runs out next summer, and Palace can’t risk losing him for nothing. They’ve already watched Marc Guehi go to Man City for a bargain, just because his deal was running down.

Now Mateta has to sit down with Palace and the doctors to figure out what to do about his knee. Surgery would sideline him for months, probably killing his World Cup chances.

He’s gutted about Milan falling through, especially after Juventus cooled their interest and Nottingham Forest had an offer turned down. Over the weekend, he even unfollowed Palace on Instagram and posted a fed-up emoji. No one really knows if he’ll even make the squad for the Brighton game.

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