Real Madrid made the decision to stay inactive during the final hours of the transfer market, although this didn't stop offers from coming in. Not only for possible departures, but also for hypothetical signings that nobody expected. The surprise came when it was revealed that an offer was ultimately rejected by Florentino Pérez in the final moments of the "mercatto".
Surprise offer
According to "Defensa Central", the name of Lucas Paquetá was put on Real Madrid's table. West Ham was looking for a new destination for him and tried its luck at Santiago Bernabéu with a loan with a purchase option.
Despite this, the reality is that Florentino Pérez had no intention of moving forward with him at any time. Lucas Paquetá is a footballer of undeniable quality, but he doesn't fit what Real Madrid was looking for. There were only two possibilities that were going to be considered: a center-back to accompany Huijsen or a creative midfielder to replace Ceballos.
The main reason
The truth is that, although the deal didn't fully convince Florentino, he put the operation in Xabi Alonso's hands. The Madrid coach's response couldn't have been clearer: "As long as Dani Ceballos is here, nobody else is needed".
Initially, the idea was for Ceballos to end up leaving for Marseille, but the Andalusian ultimately rejected this option. Having stayed, the idea is for him to get minutes with the Basque coach on the bench.
The reality here is that Xabi Alonso trusts Dani Ceballos's abilities, but he can't promise him an important role in the squad. He'll have the opportunity to earn minutes in training and in certain matches.
Lucas Paquetá doesn't fit
In any case, if the Andalusian had ended up leaving, Real Madrid was clear that Lucas Paquetá wasn't the right profile to replace him. He's much more offensive, less creative. The Brazilian has a lot of quality, but his playing style and his age (28 years) weren't entirely appealing.
Thus, Florentino Pérez and Xabi Alonso made the decision to reject the offer for Lucas Paquetá. He won't wear Real Madrid's jersey and, at least until January, he'll continue wearing West Ham's jersey.