Arsenal and Newcastle United could be set to do battle for another Brazilian from Ligue 1 outfit Lyon this summer, as both clubs are reportedly interested in midfield maestro Lucas Paqueta.
The announcement video as Newcastle announced the signing of Bruno Guimaraes in January saw them point to reports that the Gunners were keen on Guimaraes, and that they pipped them to the post, although no official approach was thought to have been made by Mikel Arteta and co.
This time could be different, however, with the Gunners needing at least one and perhaps two midfielders this summer as they look to continue their rebuild under Arteta, and at 24 years old Lucas Paqueta could fit the youthful criteria set by the club last summer.
Newcastle, meanwhile, are flush with cash after being taken over by new ownership, and, like Arsenal, are looking to build something special by targeting young options.
£58million transfer battle that may see Newcastle tussle with Arsenal again https://t.co/TVALUvxauI
— Lee Ryder (@lee_ryder) April 13, 2022
As per reports stemming from Tyneside, Paris Saint Germain have baulked at the £58 million price tag, leaving the Premier League clubs free to battle it out.
‘It is understood that there is a £58million asking price for Paqueta while wages could come in at £180,000 per week. But with PSG now believed to feel the overall package is too much it could be down to a foot race for Paqueta between Newcastle and Arsenal’, the Chronicle report.
Who is Lucas Paqueta?
Another one from the seemingly never-ending conveyer belt of Lyon midfield talent, Paqueta joined the Ligue 1 side in 2020 after a failed stint at AC Milan, having been bought by the Italian side for a hefty fee from native Brazil.
From there, he has rebuilt his career, and has been a shining light in an otherwise underwhelming campaign to date for the French side, playing in midfield but also leading the line when necessary, and has returned 7 goals and 5 assists in 29 outings in the French top flight this season.
LYON, FRANCE – MARCH 17: Lucas Paqueta of Lyon during the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 Leg Two match between Olympique Lyonnais (OL) and FC Porto at Groupama Stadium on March 17, 2022 in Decines near Lyon, France. (Photo by John Berry/Getty Images)
He has also excelled for Brazil, having racked up 31 appearances, which has yielded 7 goals.
Read more:
Rangers vs Sporting Braga live streaming: Watch UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg online
Olympique Lyon vs West Ham United live streaming: Watch UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg online
Arsenal betting odds, next game:
Southampton vs Arsenal odds: result, both teams to score, correct score & goalscorers
Arsenal’s latest videos
RANKED | Granit Xhaka and Bernd Leno rank each others’ top 5 goals and saves!
Join Granit, Bernd and Frimmy as we sit down for another episode of RANKED!…
2022-03-29T15:35:53Z
2000 Premier League goals | Saka, Bergkamp, Henry, Wright & more!
Watch every single landmark goal for Arsenal in the Premier League era. All the…
2022-03-22T15:56:22Z
Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City | 31 | 52 | 74 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 31 | 57 | 73 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 30 | 41 | 62 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 31 | 19 | 57 |
| 5 | Arsenal FC | 30 | 9 | 54 |
| 6 | West Ham United | 32 | 9 | 51 |
| 7 | Manchester United | 31 | 7 | 51 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 32 | 5 | 49 |
| 9 | Leicester City | 29 | -3 | 40 |
| 10 | Crystal Palace | 31 | 3 | 37 |
| 11 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 31 | -9 | 37 |
| 12 | Aston Villa | 31 | -4 | 36 |
| 13 | Brentford FC | 32 | -9 | 36 |
| 14 | Southampton FC | 31 | -15 | 36 |
| 15 | Newcastle United | 31 | -20 | 34 |
| 16 | Leeds United | 32 | -30 | 33 |
| 17 | Everton FC | 30 | -19 | 28 |
| 18 | Burnley FC | 30 | -19 | 24 |
| 19 | Watford FC | 31 | -31 | 22 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 31 | -43 | 21 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 20 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 17 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 13 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 12 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 12 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 11 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 11 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 10 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 10 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 10 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 10 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 9 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 9 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 9 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 9 |
| Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 9 |
| Smith-Rowe, Emile | Arsenal FC | 9 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 9 |
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 9 |
| Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 9 |
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 9 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 8 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
| Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 8 |
| Cash, Matty | Aston Villa | 0 | 8 |
| McGinn, John | Aston Villa | 0 | 8 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 8 |
| Shaw, Luke | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
| Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 7 |
| Maguire, Harry | Manchester United | 0 | 7 |
| Romero, Cristian | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 8 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 11 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 9 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 8 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 8 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 7 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 7 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 7 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 6 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 6 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 6 |
| Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 6 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 5 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 5 |