Owen Hargreaves believes Arsenal have an excellent player in their ranks who has hardly even featured yet this season.
Andrea Berta spent in excess of £250 million on eight recruits over the summer, as the sporting director looked to provide Mikel Arteta with a deep squad that can compete on multiple fronts.
The Gunners currently sit top of the Premier League, and it’s clear that the size of Arteta’s squad is paying dividends.
The Spaniard has rotated heavily between matches as he looks to keep key players fresh, and he still has more tools in his armoury that he’s yet to release.
Owen Hargreaves says Piero Hincapie is a ‘great player’
Arsenal signed Piero Hincapie from Bayer Leverkusen on loan on deadline day.
The Ecuadorian arrived in North London with an impressive pedigree, but has yet to properly feature for the Gunners as he’s been suffering from a groin injury.
A versatile left-sided defender who can either be used as an aggressive centre-back or a marauding full-back, Hincapie was a part of Leverkusen’s invincible Bundesliga-winning campaign in 2023/24.
He has been limited to just a single short cameo for Arteta’s side thus far, and it’s not yet clear how he’ll primarily be used, given the Spaniard has the likes of Gabriel Magalhaes, Riccardo Calafiori and Myles Lewis-Skelly at his disposal.
Speaking on TNT Sports’ show, the Breakdown, former Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves described Hincapie as a ‘great player’.
“By the way, we’ve not seen Hincapie yet either,” presenter Darren Fletcher said.
“He’s a great player,” Hargreaves responded.
“Yeah, there’s another one that can go into that mix. Honestly, that’s the best collection of centre-backs in the whole league easily.”
Piero Hincapie can spare Gabriel Magalhaes minutes for Arsenal
Many have assumed that the loanee will be used as a left-back at Arsenal.
However, Hincapie believes centre-back is his best position, and it’s actually possible that he’ll be used more frequently as cover for Gabriel, like Cristhian Mosquera has been for William Saliba.
Mosquera has taken minutes off Saliba, even when the Frenchman has been fit, starting away at Newcastle and away at Athletic Club.
This clearly indicates that Arteta is willing to rest his starting centre-backs, even in important matches, and this could elicit an even higher level from Gabriel in the long run.
The Brazilian has played more minutes than any other outfield player in Arsenal’s squad this season, despite returning from a serious hamstring injury over the summer.
He needs to be carefully managed, and Hincapie’s presence should allow this.
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