Before the West Ham match against the champions on Saturday, Lucas Paqueta was seen approaching Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola to give him a hug.

The 26-year-old Brazilian midfielder was in negotiations to join the Etihad during the summer, but the deal fell through.

But he made a point of going up to Man City head coach Guardiola before a ball was kicked at the London Stadium.

Along with greeting assistant coach Juanma Lillo, Paqueta gave the Spaniard a warm embrace.

At full-time, he also gave Guardiola an embrace.

And his antics infuriated a lot of West Ham supporters.

In response, one person commented on social media, “Why did Paqueta shake Pep’s hand like that ffs?”

Paqueta begged for space on the Man City bench, another person added. No respect.

“Paqueta running over to Guardiola to beg friend before kickoff,” a retorted. Pathetic.”

Despite leading 1-0 at the interval, West Ham ultimately fell short 3-1.

The hosts took the lead after James Ward-Prowse’s goal, but Man City drew even 43 seconds into the second half thanks to Jeremy Doku.

Then, in the 76th minute, Bernardo Silva gave Guardiola’s team the lead before Erling Haaland added a late third.

Paqueta has played each of West Ham’s five Premier League games so far this season despite being under investigation by the FA for allegedly engaging in suspicious betting.

He has helped David Moyes’ team in 46 games after joining from Lyon for $51 million last year. He has produced six goals and eight assists.