Manchester City will reportedly not be signing West Ham United midfielder Lucas Paqueta during the summer transfer window.
Earlier this month, it emerged that the Premier League champions were interested in adding the Brazil international to their squad.
Pep Guardiola has lost the creativity of Ilkay Gundogan this summer, while Kevin De Bruyne has been ruled out until the end of the year after hamstring surgery.
As a result, Paqueta has been earmarked as a priority alternative, with the 25-year-old known to be interested in making the switch to the Etihad Stadium.
However, the transfer has never gotten close to completion, with Hammers boss David Moyes initially saying that City had yet to match their valuation when asked by reporters last week.
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Furthermore, reports emerged at the back end of last week that Paqueta was being investigated for potential breaches of betting regulations.
Bookmakers have reported an unusual number of bets being placed on Paqueta to receive a yellow card in a fixture against Aston Villa on March 12, with the player being cautioned in the 70th minute of that match.
While Paqueta strongly denies any wrongdoing or involvement, there is the potential for the process to be drawn-out, as it was with regards to Ivan Toney's recent case.
According to Sky Sports News, City have stepped away from the negotiating table having ended their interest in completing a deal.
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The report claims that an £80m deal had previously been agreed in principle before it became clear that Paqueta would face discussions with the Football Association and FIFA.
Paqueta, who still has four years remaining on his West Ham contract, remained in the starting lineup for Sunday's encounter against Chelsea and scored a late penalty as his team won 3-1 at the London Stadium.
Unless there are any developments with the ongoing investigation, Paqueta will remain in the team for the meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday evening.
From City's perspective, it remains to be seen whether they will target an alternative, with a deal in the region of £55.5m having reportedly just been agreed with Rennes for winger Jeremy Doku.
Darren Plant
