Soccer Football - Europa League - Semi Final - First Leg - AS Roma v Bayer Leverkusen - Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy - May 2, 2024 Bayer Leverkusen's Piero Hincapie during the warm up before the match REUTERS/Alberto Lingria
Arsenal are interested in signing Bayer Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie. The Ecuador international has informed Leverkusen he would like to leave the club and has a release clause of €60m.
BBC has reported that Arsenal have have watched Hincapie extensively, as the club are on the market for a left-sided defender. Hincapie covered at left-centre back for much of Leverkusen’s impressive treble winning side of 2023/2024.
He has 166 appearances for Leverkusen, including featuring in their first two games of the current Bundesliga campaign. Hincapie would be the latest in a long list of players to depart Leverkusen this summer, with Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, Amine Adli, Granit Xhaka, and Jonathan Tah all departing the Bundesliga club.
Any move for Hincapie would depend on departures first for Arsenal, with the club having already spent over £200m on new signings this summer. The player’s arrival could spell the end for Jakub Kiwior, who continues to be linked with a move away from the club in search of more playing time.
Kiwior has been linked with a move to Porto, and talks could accelerate with just over a week remaining in the transfer window.
Fabio Vieira, Reiss Nelson and Oleksandr Zinchenko are the other names most linked with an exit from the club.
Arsenal keen on Hincapie
Arsenal may have another incentive to sign Hincapie – beating their fierce rivals Tottenham to another player. After pipping Spurs to the signature of Eberechi Eze last week, it looks like Arsenal have set their sights on thwarting their rivals once more following the news that Tottenham were also linked with Hincapie.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported via X on Monday morning that Tottenham had officially approached Leverkusen for Hincapie – offering an initial loan deal with an obligation to buy for around his €60m release clause. The fee would only be paid in 2026 though once the loan has concluded, and this offer was rejected by Leverkusen who are seeking the money upfront.
Romano followed that post with another just an hour later, this time reporting that Arsenal too have approached Leverkusen for Hincapie. Romano added that no official bid has been launched yet by Arsenal as the deal would depend on an exit for Kiwior and/or Zinchenko.
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