Piero Hincapie of Bayer 04 Leverkusen. (Photo by Joosep Martinson/Getty Images)
Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham Hotspur are eyeing a summer move for Bayern Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie, who has emerged as a potential centre-back for the Blues.
German transfer expert Christian Falk stated via GiveMeSport (h/t Football.London) indicates that Premier League giants Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham could be in a transfer battle for Hincapie.
“Tottenham still has its eye on him, already in the summer, but also Arsenal again and Chelsea are visiting what is happening with him.”
Chelsea’s defence should be strengthened, as their backline has looked sluggish and has been exploited occasionally, with only Thiago Silva faring well among other defenders.
Graham Potter has shuffled his defence to assess which defenders can complement the Brazilian defender well, with Trevoh Chalobah and Kalidou Koulibaly being the alternate defenders, and occasionally, left-back Marc Cucurella has also deputised in the position.
21-year-old Hincapie, who has played 19 games for the German club across competitions this season, looks to grab headlines with his defensive traits but is now being assessed by the English clubs.
With Chelsea interested in signing him, it looks like a great deal, but nothing is confirmed as the club is yet to make a proposal. The Ecuadorian looks like a good signing as the club once again looks to invest in a youngster with an eye on the future.
He could get more playing time here compared to Arsenal, who already haven’t been short of first-team centre-backs, with Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba being the Gunners’ heart of defence. They are both young and would be obvious hurdles in the Leverkusen star’s path to regular first-team football.
They have reliable backups as well with Ben White who currently plays as a right-back, and Rob Holding. Spurs also have adequate depth in their backline, with Cristian Romero and Eric Dier being the key defenders but a player of Hincapie’s profile could easily swap into their three-man backline, especially in the left centre-half area where Ben Davies has been playing out of position.
Chelsea need to sign an experienced centre-back who plays in the Premier League or has shown indications that he can make it at the top level. Hincapie, who started all three games for Ecuador at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, certainly falls into that category.
We have to be smart and fast with our interest in Hincapie as Arsenal and Spurs would not make this transfer race for us. Hopefully, signing Jakub Kiwior cools down the Gunners’ interest in Hincapie.
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