A gambling investigation has halted the progress of a $90m transfer of Lucas Paqueta to Manchester City.
A recent inquiry into betting irregularities has unexpectedly derailed the Brazilian’s anticipated move to the newly crowned Premier League champions.
Man City Transfer stalls over betting probe
The English Football Association (FA) has been pursuing further information regarding the West Ham United star’s part in a possible breach of rules.
Irregular betting patterns were spotted in relation to cautions that the Brazilian received in a 22/23 season match. A Brazilian regulator contacted the English FA and the world’s governing soccer body Fifa about the strange bets placed at that time.
Soccer players in the United Kingdom are banned from any form of gambling related to their games. This rule is similar in several other sports worldwide. However, the English soccer scene is much more scrutinized due to Sandro Tonali’s recent ban.
Tonali was banned from football activity after he was found to have wagered in his home nation and confessed to gambling addiction. His 10-month ban from featuring in any competitions spanned the 23/24 Premier League campaign. Tonali will not feature in Italy’s campaign at the 2024 Euros either.
Tonali was hit with a further two-month suspended sentence and a fine of $25,000 for his part in soccer gambling as a Newcastle player.
So Paquetta could face a lengthy time off the pitch if the English FA finds that there is any wrongdoing on the Brazil star’s part.
Paquetta has denied all of the rumors surrounding the case and stated to the BBC “It’s been seven months since it happened, and I’m cooperating as much as I can.
West Ham have always supported me, there was no reason for them not to do what they did, which was nothing more than put their player out there to play soccer.”
Fifa and the English FA are yet to provide their findings in the case of Paqueta and these strange betting patterns, but the transfer of the highly-rated star hangs in the balance until this matter is resolved.
Image: Ideogram.