Lucas Paqueta of Brazil looks on in the Kirin Challenge Cup game against Japan at Japan National Stadium in Tokyo, Japan, June 6, 2022. /CFP
West Ham United of the Premier League have acquired Brazilian midfielder Lucas Paqueta from Ligue 1's Olympique Lyonnais, the English club announced on Monday.
According to ESPN, "The Hammers" paid an initial transfer fee of 36.5 million pounds (about $42.8 million) with potential add-ons of 14.4 million pounds (about $16.9 million). The combined number will break the club record of 45 million pounds (about $52.8 million) West Ham paid for French striker Sebastien Haller in 2019.
"I am extremely happy to be here. I hope it's the beginning of an enjoyable journey. I hope my time here is successful," Paqueta, who signed a five-year contract with West Ham, said in a statement. "Last season, West Ham had a very good season and I hope they continue to enjoy more and more good seasons in my time at the club. I am excited to pull on the West Ham shirt and show the fans what I can do, to help my teammates and the club."
Lucas Paqueta (R) of Olympique Lyonnais dribbles in the Ligue 1 game against AC Ajaccio at Groupama Stadium in Lyon, France, August 5, 2022. /CFP
Having finished seventh in the Premier League standings table last season, West Ham qualified for the Europa Conference League after defeating Viborg in the playoff stage. It's the club's second straight season to participate in the European tournament. They didn't start well in the 2022-23 Premier League season, finishing the first four games with one win and three losses.
"He's (Paqueta's) a player I've admired from afar for a very long time and of course, we saw him close up in our Europa League campaign last season," David Moyes, manager of West Ham said. "He's a very talented footballer and while he will need time to adapt to the Premier League, we're excited about adding another proven international to our squad."
Premier clubs set a new record of 1.5 billion pounds (about $1.77 billion) in transfer fees for the summer window last week, according to finance company Deloitte. However, they've continued to spend in a big way since then.
Antony of Ajax looks on after the 5-3 loss to PSV in the Johan Cruijff Schaal game at Johan Cruijff ArenA in Amsterdam, Netherlands, July 30, 2022. /CFP
For example, Manchester United landed Brazilian winger Antony from Ajax for 84 million pounds (about $98.6 million); Tottenham Hotspur announced the permanent signing of Argentine center-back Cristian Romero from Atalanta for 42.5 million pounds (about $49.9 million); Newcastle United introduced Swedish striker Alexander Isak from Real Sociedad for 59 million pounds (about $69.7 million).
The summer transfer window will close on September 1 and the record spending number on transfers by the Premier League for the whole year is 1.86 billion pounds (about $2.20 billion) for the 2017-18 season.