West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta has been chosen ahead of Newcastle United’s Bruno Guimaraes as one reporter picks the former as the ‘best Brazilian midfielder in the world’.
And it’s not as if Fernando Campos, a reporter for ESPN Brasil and an avid viewer of the Selecao, did not have plenty to choose from.
In addition to Bruno Guimaraes, Newcastle United’s South American string-puller, Brazil coach Fernando Diniz also has Casemiro, Fabinho and Gerson at his disposal. The much-admired Andre Trindade too.
Campos, however, believes one stands head and shoulders above the rest, West Ham’s number ten one of the first names on the Brazil team sheet and his finest performances often coming on the international stage.
Bruno Guimaraes vs Lucas Paqueta
“For me, (Paqueta) is the best Brazilian midfielder in the world. What he’s doing at West Ham, it’s a joke,” Campos argues.
“At the moment, in this season, he’s playing a lot with and without the ball. It’s absurd, right, the influence he has on David Moyes’ team?”
Paqueta is just eight away from collecting 50 Brazil caps. His guile in possession and his ferocity out of it making him the perfect foil for an ageing Casemiro. Newcastle’s Guimaraes, in contrast, has featured just 15 times for his country, and could find himself in direct competition with Fluminense’s highly-rated, Liverpool-linked Andre for the deep-lying role once Casemiro hangs up his Brazil boots.
‘Exceptional’
“Recently, Bruno is a player who has been doing an exceptional job at Newcastle,” Manchester United’s former Real Madrid enforcer told OGOL last week.
“With every training session and every game, I’m more comfortable with him. (Guimaraes) is a great player, who has been demonstrating this in the most difficult league in the world.
“It’s not up to me to determine who I’m going to play with. But, of course, when you play longer with a player, you have a greater adaptation.”
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