One player that has been under focus this season is the Brazilian talisman Lucas Paqueta who was heavily linked to Manchester City before the spot fixing allegations came to light.
Paqueta was hit with four charges of intentionally being booked by the FA in May after an investigation into irregular betting on Paqueta Island in Brazil. To add to his woes the player has also been hit with two counts of failing to comply with the investigation.
Paqueta has denied all charges against him and has said that he will “fight with every breath to clear my name”.
It is notable that this has affected his performances since, and as seen in an earlier article on Claret and Hugh and several national papers, it has now come to light that his hearing will take place in March 2025, during the Premier League season.
After the recent game against Brentford, Tony Cascarino commenting for Talk Sport said “Paqueta looks completely a shadow of the player so far this season that we know he is capable of”. His co-commentator Natalie Sawyer even went as far as to say he looked disinterested.
Signs of improvement for Paqueta?
A goal yesterday was much needed for the Brazilian international, yet equally he was culpable for the Ipswich equaliser earlier on in the game. Ex Hammer, Tony Gale commenting pulled no punches “He defended awfully there, he’s got to do better”
“We don’t talk about this, we talk about football. The next match, and about life, and not about this”