Arsenal have completed a deal with Bayer Leverkusen to sign Piero Hincapie on a season-long loan with an option to buy the centre-back for £45m.
A five-year contract has been agreed with the 23-year-old if the option is triggered.
Hincapie made more than 100 appearances for Leverkusen since joining the German club in 2021, winning the Bundesliga title in 2023/24.
Sporting director Andrea Berta said: “At only 23, Piero already has significant experience, both in the Bundesliga and at international level.
“He is an intelligent defender with real strength and versatility. His performances in recent years for both club and country have been of a consistent high quality, and we are confident Piero will continue to grow this season and be an important player for us.”
This content is provided by Twitter, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Twitter cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Twitter cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Twitter cookies for this session only.
Enable Cookies
Allow Cookies Once
Mikel Arteta added: “Piero has a real physical presence, with his versatility and tactical flexibility giving us strong added defensive options.
“He is a big character, with a very good combination of both youth and maturity. He will make our squad stronger and more competitive as we continue into this season.”
Hincapie will wear the No 5 shirt with the Gunners.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Watch Hincapie’s best Bundesliga moments!
Where will Hincapie play?
Analysis by Sky Sports’ Nick Wright:
Hincapie’s versatility can be seen in how he was used at Bayer Leverkusen. While he mostly played as a left-sided central defender in a back three, he also proved useful as a left-back. He even played 674 minutes as a left wing-back.
Image:
Piero Hincapie’s minutes played by position and heat map at Bayer Leverkusen
The most obvious vacancy in Arsenal’s squad, following the sale of Jakub Kiwior to Porto, is of course as a left-sided centre-back behind Gabriel Magalhaes, with Riccardo Calafiori increasingly favoured as a left-back rather than a central defender.
But Hincapie could also provide another option as a left-back, tucking inside in the style of Myles Lewis-Skelly – he ranked among the Bundesliga’s top 10 players for passes last season – or pushing up the flank on the outside of Arsenal’s left winger.
Datawrapper
This content is provided by Datawrapper, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Datawrapper cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Datawrapper cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Datawrapper cookies for this session only.
Enable Cookies
Allow Cookies Once
Do Arsenal need him?
South American football expert Tim Vickery on Sky Sports News’ Transfer Talk:
“Hincapie is a left-footed defender, he’s a centre-back who can also play at left-back as well.
“He’s not a flyer-up-the-wing kind of left-back. He likes to bring the ball out of the defence.
“I remember the first time I saw him in Ecuador, they threw him in as a teenager, and I had had my doubts.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Arsenal have announced Piero Hincapie on loan from Bayer Leverkusen to cap off a busy summer window.
“I thought too spindly, maybe, and he’s got mistakes in him. It’s been great to be proved wrong, because he’s grown and grown and really is a terrific defender.
“My little doubt here is, why would Arsenal want to spend so much for a player in this position when they have both Gabriel Magalhaes and [Riccardo] Calafiori? So you’ve got cover there in both the positions that Hincapie offers.
“It’s a little bit of a surprise to me why it’s Arsenal, and based on what we’ve seen so far in the season, you would have thought that this is a player Liverpool could really do with.”
Kiwior completes Porto move
Arsenal defender Jakub Kiwior has completed a move to Porto on a season-long loan with an obligation to buy for £24m.
This content is provided by Twitter, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Twitter cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Twitter cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Twitter cookies for this session only.
Enable Cookies
Allow Cookies Once
Kiwior joined the Gunners from Spezia in a deal worth £20m in January 2023. The Poland international has made 68 appearances for the Gunners, scoring three goals.