Lucas Paqueta in tears after receiving yellow card as West Ham star subbed off

Lucas Paqueta started crying shortly after referee Michael Oliver showed him a yellow card in the second half of Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Tottenham at the London Stadium

West Ham star Lucas Paqueta broke down in TEARS prior to being subbed off during Sunday’s clash with Tottenham. Paqueta, 27, had been given a yellow card before cameras showed him wiping the tears away with his shirt.

The Brazilian midfielder was soon withdrawn by West Ham boss Graham Potter. Paqueta was booked in the 73rd minute after fouling Spurs’ Mikey Moore to stop a counter attack.

Referee Michael Oliver had no choice but to show him a yellow card, leaving Paqueta emotional, as his team-mates gathered around him. The game eventually ended 1-1 after West Ham captain Jarrod Bown cancelled out Wilson Odebert’s 15th-minute opener in a Sunday afternoon contest which had little riding on it for both teams.

Paqueta’s emotional moment at the London Stadium came after the hearing into his alleged breaches of the FA’s betting rules finally began in March. The Brazil international was charged with spot-fixing offences in four Premier League matches between November 2022 and August 2023.

Paqueta himself didn’t place any bets. The stakes in question are understood to have been placed by friends and family, with a total of 60 bets made.

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The former Lyon and AC Milan star denies any wrongdoing but the FA are reportedly seeking a lifetime ban. His hearing was due to start on Monday, March 17.

After being charged, Paqueta said in a statement: “I am extremely surprised and upset that the FA has decided to charge me. For nine months, I have cooperated with every step of their investigation and provided all the information I can.

“I deny the charges in their entirety and will fight with every breath to clear my name. Due to the ongoing process, I will not be providing any further comment.”

In October, Paqueta said that he wants the FA to investigate ‘misleading’ leaks. “I am frustrated and upset to have read recent misleading and inaccurate press articles, published in both England and Brazil, claiming to disclose information about my case,” he wrote on social media platform X.

“Some of that information is entirely false and appears designed to undermine my position. I am also concerned that, although they are false and misleading, these articles are clearly sourced from an individual close to the case.

“The FA proceedings are supposed to be confidential and they are extremely serious for me and my family. The continued leaking and publication of inaccurate information in the press is now putting at risk my chance of receiving a fair hearing.

“I have, therefore, instructed my lawyers to write to the FA to request that they conduct a thorough investigation into how information about the case, even if inaccurate, is finding its way into the public domain.”

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