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Nuno Espirito Santo has claimed Lucas Paqueta acted in “not the proper way” but admitted his Brazilian playmaker is irreplaceable. West Ham have accepted a £36.5million bid from his former club Flamengo and he has flown home for a medical.

Paqueta provided the assist for Jarrod Bowen’s winning goal in the 2023 UEFA Conference League final. But the £51m signing, who was cleared of spot-fixing by the FA after a two-year investigation, abandons the east London club five points from safety and deep a relegation battle.

The Portuguese boss said: “For me Lucas is a special player, a special person, he's a number 10, I tell you many times. I think he, in terms of club, was not the proper way, if you want, I think everything could be different, but the circumstances are what it is.

"He wanted to go to Brazil, he has an offer, let's expect the medical, and you keep moving, knowing that he's special person and special player and we wish him all the very best for him.”

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Asked how could things have been different, Espirito Santo replied: "If it was in another moment of the season, if we were not in the situation that we are. Two years ago, we knew what what happened with Lucas, so many things have happened to come to this end. It could be done two years ago, you know what I mean, and everything will be different. But it is what it is and we move forward.

“It's not official yet, so with the club we have allowed him to travel to do his medical. But I think we found a solution that everybody was aware and came to a good conclusion. Lucas was clear that he wanted to return home and we expect the medical and things to come official. Let's wait and see.”

West Ham have signed four players in the January window - including former Wolves and Fulham winger Adama Traore - and remain active in the transfer market before Saturday’s visit to Chelsea.

But Espirito Santo admitted: “You cannot replace Lucas because he is unique with the number 10 that has special qualities. You cannot find many players like Lucas in the transfer window. You cannot. We have to move forward what we have.”

The Hammers are five points adrift of safety heading into their trip to Stamford Bridge on Saturday. But there have been obvious improvements recently, with Espirito Santo overseeing wins over Tottenham and Sunderland in the last two matches, with new arrivals Pablo and Taty Castellanos making an impact in attack.

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