West Ham star Lucas Paqueta ‘grants FA access to his phone’ as part of investigation into potential betting breaches

WEST HAM star Lucas Paqueta has reportedly “permitted the Football Association access to his phone” amid his alleged betting breaches.

The allegations against the Brazilian international are linked to bets back in Brazil that were not directly placed by the winger.

GettyWest Ham’s Lucas Paqueta has granted the FA access to his phone for their investigation[/caption]

Paqueta, 26, has denied all allegations made against him.

However, the Daily Mail now states that he has agreed to give the FA access to his phone as they continue their investigation into whether he has breached their strict betting rules.

Paqueta joined West Ham from Lyon for a club record £51.4m including add-ons in the summer of 2022.

He suffered from injury issues throughout his first campaign but he shone in the Europa Conference League, leading the Hammers to their first piece of major silverware since 1980 with Euro glory.

The playmaker was then on the brink of a switch to Manchester City after they submitted a £70m bid only for the deal to collapse amid the betting allegations.

Meanwhile, this latest development comes as frustration mounts in Brazil over the time being taken by the FA to conclude their investigation.

The national team voluntarily withdrew Paquetta from the squad when the accusations were made public in August.

He was then left out of boss Fernardo Diniz’s squad for the recent international break but now the Samba Boys are beginning to grow impatient.

This fresh report claims that “Diniz is set to recommend the recall of Paqueta for next month’s games versus Colombia and Argentina” despite the investigation.

But now the FA have access to his phone activity it seems that a decision on whether to charge him or not may not be far away.