Flamengo close to Lucas Paquetá signing as Carioca pressure mounts | OneFootball

According to Coluna Do Fla, Flamengo are very close to completing a deal for midfielder Lucas Paquetá from West Ham, on a day their Carioca campaign was complicated by a 2-1 defeat to Fluminense.

The loss on Sunday 25 came in the fourth round and leaves Flamengo needing a major combination of other results to avoid the relegation quadrangular. Depending on how the round finishes, they could be virtually out of the quarter-final race.

The top four advance to the quarter-finals, while fifth and sixth enter the relegation quadrangular. If Madureira take points and Nova Iguaçu win, Flamengo will be practically eliminated.

On Paquetá, the offer is 41.25 million euros, equal to R$ 255.9 million. It is below bids from Chelsea and Aston Villa, but the player's preference has carried weight. He previously did not want to leave West Ham, and has now asked to join Flamengo, aiding a positive outcome.

In their last two Carioca matches, coach Filipe Luís improvised at left-back, using Daniel Sales against Vasco and Varela against Fluminense, in rotation with Alex Sandro. He said Ayrton Lucas is in the final phase of treatment for pubalgia and should rejoin the group from next week, speaking after the defeat.

Source: Coluna Do Fla