The biggest danger for Sparta? Lucas Paquetá. Neymar defended the Brazilian toy

Sparta will face a very tough opponent, needless to say. Lyon have several great footballers in their midfield, but one stands out a bit more than the others. Lucas Paquetá.

Paquetá is a typical Brazilian footballer. He is blessed with incredible technique, gracefulness of movement, going over players with a cross is the order of the day for him. And he’s finally added the numbers.

From Flamengo in Brazil he headed to AC Milan, but his first European engagement did not suit him. In 37 league games in two seasons he only scored 1 goal and 2 assists, his performances weren’t great either.

And so he was snapped up by Lyon’s sporting director and Paquet’s compatriot Juninho Pernambucano ahead of the 2020/21 season. The best direct-kick taker in history untied the 24-year-old’s legs and a proper Brazilian samba began.

Paquetá scored 9 goals and added 5 assists in his first season, he also had a 1+1 record in the Coupe de France. He became a stable member of the Brazilian national team and this year he continues his great performances. In 10 league games he scored 4 goals and added 1 assist. In the Europa League, he assisted one goal.

But Paquet’s contribution is not just in numbers. With his movement and brilliant thinking, he can come up with something surprising to create chances for his teammates. Like he did against Monaco at the weekend. Paquetá came back late from the national team meeting and was not in the starting line-up, but Lyon could not find a recipe for the Prince’s team.

And so in the 67th minute the Brazilian chic jumped into the game, devised two actions, after which Lyon scored twice and, although he had no assist written down, was the hero of the match.

At the end of the game against Troyes, Paquetá wanted to show the home fans something of his repertoire. He attempted the famous “rainbow flick”, a heel flick over the head of a teammate. But the referee showed him a yellow card for taunting his opponent.

Neymar, Paquet’s teammate, didn’t like that. “It’s terribly sad to get a yellow for dribbling. Last year it happened to me, this year to Lucas. I really don’t understand the reason! The famous ‘Yoga Bonito’ is over. Enjoy it while you can, or pray it comes back,” Neymar wrote on his Instagram at the time.

But Paquetá is not only popular among Lyon fans for his goals, assists and tackles. He also entertains fans with his dances celebrating his goals. Will he add one on Thursday at Letná?

Source: Twitter, Livesport