West Ham have £42m bid rejected to sign midfielder ahead of Arsenal

West Ham have had a €50 million (£42.2m) bid rejected by Lyon for Lucas Paqueta, according to reports in France.

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Arsenal explored the possibility of a deal for the Brazil international earlier this summer but have decided against making a move for now.

Lyon had initially been holding out for a €80m (£67.6m) fee for Paqueta, who was voted as the best foreign player in Ligue 1 last season.

According to L’Equipe, West Ham have failed with their latest offer but talks between the two clubs will continue.

The report claims that Lyon will consider a sale for an extra €10m (£8.4m) but West Ham still need to agree personal terms with Paqueta.

It’s understood that the midfielder is not against joining West Ham but he would also be content to remain at Lyon for another season as he targets a place in Brazil’s World Cup squad later this year.

Paqueta’s agents are currently in London in order to meet with several Premier League clubs, although Manchester City and Newcastle United have also expressed their interest this summer.

When asked on Wednesday if he has lost count on the number of players West Ham have targeted this summer, David Moyes replied: ‘Do you know what, I’d probably say yes.

‘We’ve bid for a lot of players and if I told you who, you would burst out laughing and say, ‘you’re kidding’.

‘Maybe we’ve tried to go way above our station, but we have tried to get really top players because I knew we needed it.

‘For us a couple of top players coming in would give everyone a lift and help ease the pressure on Declan Rice, Michail Antonio and Tomas Soucek.

‘This transfer window has felt really long. That’s one thing.

‘There are some players there in the market who have really changed the market price, some clubs who haven’t been able to spend, some who have spent a ridiculous amount on people, it’s been a very difficult market.

‘We’ve found the agents really difficult and very, very expensive to get that side of the deal done. So much is getting added on to things now. If the real world knew where it was going, and what was happening, it would be a shock.’

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