West Ham: Nuno Espirito Santo issues Lucas Paqueta injury update before Tottenham amid Flamemgo transfer links | OneFootball

West Ham star is at the centre of transfer speculation and missed the FA Cup win over QPR through injury

Nuno Espirito Santo has revealed that Lucas Paqueta will be assessed ahead of West Ham’s Premier League clash against Tottenham despite being linked with a return to boyhood club Flamengo.

Rumours of Paqueta’s departure intensified last weekend as reports emerged that he had asked not to play during West Ham’s FA Cup tie with Queens Park Rangers.

West Ham, though, say that Paqueta missed the game with a back injury.

The Brazilian, who is said to be keen on a return to his native country, trained as normal ahead of Saturday’s crunch London derby and could return to the side as the Hammers look to bridge their seven point gap to safety.

Asked whether Paqueta would be available for selection at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Nuno delivered a general team news update.

He said: "All of them are recovering. All of them are recovering with different things. Konstantinos has had a neck issue that has taken some time and is still painful.

“Matheus is back doing individual sessions and Luca is still on treatment so let's see. We still have a couple of days."

Standard Sport understands West Ham have yet to receive a formal bid for Paqueta, and Nuno added that he was keen to keep hold of the playmaker despite an inconsistent campaign.

Paqueta has scored five goals in all competitions this season, but has served two separate suspensions for ill-discipline.

“I think it's a situation we have to solve. We always want our best players involved, so let's try to sort the situation.”

Callum Wilson is free to leave West Ham this month

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While Nuno wants to keep hold of Paqueta, the Hammers boss has admitted that James Ward-Prowse and Callum Wilson can leave the club in January in search of minutes.

Ward-Prowse has yet to feature under Nuno, since he took charge of the club in September, while Wilson has moved down the pecking order after the arrivals of strikers Pablo Felipe and Taty Catstellanos.

Asked about the pairs’ future, Nuno said the club were trying to find solutions as he looks to remodel his squad heading into the second half of the season.

“We are waiting on ins and outs,” he said. “I think we need to rebalance the squad and bring more options to certain positions, and find solutions for players who maybe aren't having so many minutes.”