West Ham’s Paqueta withdrawn from Brazil squad for betting

West Ham midfielder, Lucas Paqueta, has been withdrawn from the Brazil squad amid concerns surrounding an FA and FIFA betting investigation.

The investigation is believed to centre around Paqueta getting booked in games, with the bets being placed in Brazil, and the 25-year-old will now miss World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Bolivia in September.

Paqueta, however, said he has not placed any bets himself and is said to be shocked by reports.

Brazil interim head coach, Fernando Diniz, said: “Paqueta was on the list. He’s a player I like a lot. It’s time for him to resolve these issues. People need time to sort out these issues. He’s a player I love.”

The midfielder was booked nine times for club and country last season.

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An £80 million deal for Paqueta to join Manchester City has almost been agreed and could still happen if the issue is cleared up quickly.

In the meantime, Paqueta is focused on playing for West Ham.

The FA and Manchester City have declined to speak on the latest development.

Paqueta has nine goals in 42 appearances for Brazil.

Brazil forward, Neymar, who joined Al-Hilal in the Saudi Pro League on Tuesday, has been named to the squad that will face Bolivia on September 8 and Peru four days later.

While recovering from an ankle injury sustained in February, the 31-year-old forward has not played for Brazil since last year’s World Cup.

Diniz added: “Neymar expressed a desire for us to work together and a desire to rethink his participation in the national team.

“I spoke to him recently and he was very willing, extremely happy for the opportunity.”

The Star