West Ham have enlisted top solicitor Nick De Marco to defend Lucas Paqueta in his bid to avoid a lifetime ban from football, according to The Sun. De Marco, who recently helped Leicester City escape a points deduction, is now working to clear Paqueta of four allegations of spot-fixing.
This development comes after reports surfaced yesterday that the Football Association (FA) has added two more charges to Paqueta’s case. These new allegations accuse the Brazilian midfielder of obstructing the investigation by failing to submit his mobile phone to FA investigators on two occasions, claiming it had been lost.
The FA is reportedly aiming for a lifetime ban for Paqueta, with a hearing scheduled for March next year. The original charges focus on suspicious betting patterns tied to yellow cards Paqueta received while playing for West Ham.
57 year old De Marco has been labelled ‘The very best’ and has scored victories over the football authorities with in a number of cases, most famously with Newcastle United and Leicester City.
If Paqueta was with another club and this story unfolded in this way over this period of time my feelings would be that, his erratic body language, total loss of form, over exaggerating every challenge with or without the ball, diminishing lack of communication with his teammates portrays a very concerned individual and shows signs of guilt and huge regret.
Being a lifelong fan, I cannot believe a player would arrive at our club and act in this devious way. Right now I’m giving him the benefit of doubt.
We can only hope that he was not involved, is found not guilty and gets back to his best and repays the club and their fans for their support.
Wishful thinking Frank. If he dodges the bullet he’ll be gone. Up there if they get away with it. It’s all about the money nowadays. Has been for years. And if you think about it the way the authorities are hanging it out and making his life hell why shouldn’t he grab what he can while he can
Let’s hope the jury aren’t all Spurs fans!!
You wouldn’t want anyone in the fa having access to anything private on your phone would you. Common sense. Change everything then dispose if it.
The two new charges are just so much puff. The FA asked for Paquetas phone and he handed it over. The FA kept if for eight weeks which is long enough to do anything and their omission not to download everything.
As is no surprise Paqueta bought a new phone, who wouldn’t. They later ask for the phone back again but it’s been disposed of isn’t unreasonable given that they’d already had if for eight weeks. Who would reasonably think that it would be wanted again.
Those things are more the FAs omissions than Paquetas and any silk worth their salt would drive a bus through anything as weak as that.