Man City’s proposed move for Premier League midfielder collapses

Manchester City will be looking to maintain their perfect start to the Premier League season by beating Sheffield United on Sunday. 

The Citizens have so far beaten Burnley and Newcastle United – 3-0 and 1-0 respectively – marking a strong start to their defence of the Premier League title.

City have signed Mateo Kovacic and Josko Gvardiol so far this summer and had been hoping to add another midfielder to their ranks, but it appears that the proposed deal has collapsed.

As per Football Insider, City’s move for West Ham United midfielder Lucas Paqueta is completely off.

The report claims that the Manchester outfit had agreed an £80 million fee with the Hammers for the player, but the move was put on hold last week after the Brazilian became the subject of an investigation into alleged betting breaches.

Paqueta’s proposed move to Manchester City has collapsed

Paqueta, 25, joined West Ham from French side Lyon last summer and impressed during his first season in England, making 41 appearances across all competitions.

The Brazil international, who has been capped 42 times by his country, scored five goals and provided seven assists last term.

During a two-year stay in France, Paqueta made 80 appearances across all competitions, scoring 21 goals and providing 13 assists.

City were in the market for a new addition following the departures of Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez, to Barcelona and Al-Ahli respectively.

Despite the proposed deal having collapsed, it is also claimed that Paqueta could still move to The Etihad in January, but it would have to involve the two clubs agreeing an entirely new deal.

Having signed a five-year-deal when joining the Hammers last summer, Paqueta’s current contract isn’t set to expire until 2027.

The East London outfit are therefore under very little pressure to sell the midfielder, hence the significant fee that had been agreed.