What Lucas Paqueta really did in order to force through his West Ham exit have been revealed – and fans won’t believe the lengths he went to.
Lucas Paqueta’s career with West Ham ended with the Brazilian asking fans for forgiveness.
And the 28-year-old’s Flamengo career has started with the same plea.
Paqueta asked West Ham fans to understand the reasons he wanted to leave England for a return to Brazil following his two-year spot-fixing ordeal.
But most Hammers supporters feel he could have stayed for another four months in order to try and help the club in their desperate battle to stay in the Premier League.
Paqueta pleads forgiveness from West Ham and Flamengo fans
After arriving back at his boyhood club, Paqueta was registered in time to make his second debut in the SuperCopa – the Brazilian equivalent of the Community Shield – against Corinthians.
Paqueta was soon pleading for forgiveness from fans again, after missing an absolute sitter to equalise with his side 1-0 down in the closing stages.
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Salt was rubbed in Paqueta’s wounds when Corinthians then went up the other end and made it 2-0 to seal the victory.
Instant karma for Paqueta as far as some West Ham fans were concerned after he abandoned the club in their hour of need.
Lucas Paqueta celebrates after scoring for West Ham against Nottingham Forest.
Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images
The move came after a three-week saga during which Paqueta’s camp claimed he had a back injury which meant he could not play against QPR, Spurs and Sunderland.
The Irons won all three games without him.
In a rare statement, West Ham then announced they had given Paqueta permission to travel to Brazil for a medical – before the deal was officially concluded.
West Ham aimed a dig at the FA and Paqueta in that statement, thanking everyone but the playmaker.
Although they did later thank Paqueta for his service and providing the assist which won the east Londoners their only major trophy of the last 46 years.
Fans won’t believe what Paqueta really did to force West Ham exit
On the eve of that statement from the club, a host of well-informed sources were still claiming the move was far from certain.
Then, all of a sudden the deal was agreed. Now it seems we know why.
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A graphic showing Lucas Paqueta's all-time statistics for West Ham.
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And West Ham fans won’t believe what Paqueta really did to force through the Flamengo move.
Details have now emerged of the extraordinary step taken by West Ham’s record £51m signing to force through his return to Flamengo — and it is one that many Hammers supporters simply will not believe.
Flamengo's Lucas Paqueta reacts to his miss against Corinthians
Photo by Sergio Lima / AFP via Getty Images
Money has more influence than ever in the modern game.
It is almost always the difference between making and breaking deals and contracts.
But Paqueta was so desperate to get his way that he took matters into his own hands – by helping to pay for his own transfer fee.
According to TNT Sports Brazil, Paqueta ‘made up’ the difference in the payment from Flamengo to West Ham for his transfer.
The deal was agreed at €42 million (£36.25m), but Flamengo had set a ceiling of £35.6m.
Paqueta helped pay for his own transfer fee
To get the deal done, TNT Sports Brazil claim, the player gave up £650k from his five-year contract with Flamengo so the club could use that amount to complete the offer.
In addition, Paqueta even waived his January salary at West Ham and personally covered the entire cost of the chartered flight to land in Rio de Janeiro last Friday and arrive in time to be registered for the Supercopa do Brasil.
Lucas Paquetá 'inteirou' o pagamento do Flamengo ao West Ham pela sua contratação.
O negócio foi fechado por 42 milhões de euros (R$ 260 milhões), mas o Fla havia definido um teto de € 41,250 milhões (R$ 256 milhões). Para destravar o negócio, o jogador abriu mão de € 750 mil… pic.twitter.com/uM7RxhjTcP
— Planeta do Futebol 🌎 (@futebol_info) February 2, 2026
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Many West Ham fans have been left perplexed by the outpouring of emotion from Paqueta and his wife since his exit, feeling he is overplaying how unhappy he was with his situation in east London.
It has painted a picture that playing for West Ham was somehow akin to being imprisoned.
Paqueta has blamed the FA for his extreme homesickness but West Ham’s need should have superseded that for a few more months at least.
Hammers supporters showed Paqueta nothing but love during his time at the club despite inconsistent performances and the two-year spot fixing investigation and case.
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