Man Utd, Arsenal, Tottenham and Aston Villa WILL bid for £80m West Ham star on one condition

Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham and Aston Villa are reportedly set to bid for West Ham midfielder Lucas Paqueta in the summer. 

The talented 26-year-old came close to joining Manchester City after the Premier League champions agreed a £80m transfer fee with the Hammers in August.

Paqueta entered into contract talks with the Cityzens and he was keen to make the switch.

However, the move ultimately collapsed after the FA opened an investigation into the Brazil star for alleged breaches of betting rules.

Man City decided against proceeding with the deal as they did not want to risk signing anyone who could receive a lengthy ban – as Newcastle star Sandro Tonali did.

Pep Guardiola opted to sign Matheus Nunes from Wolves as an alternative to Paqueta, who has continued his good form for West Ham this season.

The midfielder has scored five goals and made six assists in 27 appearances in all competitions for the Hammers this season.

Paqueta is currently sidelined with a calf injury, though. David Moyes has put no firm date on his return to fitness.

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PL clubs queue up to sign Lucas Paqueta 

Despite the controversy surrounding Paqueta, plenty of top European clubs are still interested in securing his services at the end of the season

According to West Ham transfer source Claret and Hugh, Man Utd, Arsenal, Tottenham and Aston Villa have ‘made it clear’ that they will launch summer offers for the midfielder once he is cleared of all charges.

Paqueta has an £80m release clause in his contract – which is valid until 2027 – which the Premier League quartet will need to trigger in order to sign him.

All four of the teams are keen to strengthen in midfield. As exclusively revealed by TEAMtalk, for example, Man Utd, Arsenal and Tottenham have enquired about signing Everton star Amadou Onana in the summer.

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery wants to take his team to the next level and a move for Paqueta would be a huge statement of intent from the Midlands club.

West Ham would ideally like to keep Paqueta but will be powerless to stop him from leaving if his release clause is triggered.

With that in mind, he is definitely a player to keep a close eye on over the coming months.

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