Piero Hincapie completed his loan move to Arsenal on deadline day, becoming the eighth signing of the Andrea Berta era at the Emirates.
The Gunners needed to spend big this summer to ensure they are able to compete with Liverpool for the Premier League title once again, and Berta delivered.
The Italian sporting director has spent in excess of £250 million in the transfer window, acquiring eight players in the process.
Hincapie was the last to join, after Arsenal and Bayer Leverkusen agreed a loan deal with an option to buy for the left-sided defender.
What Granit Xhaka told Piero Hincapie about Arsenal
While the deal is initially a loan, Arsenal are expected to acquire Hincapie permanently next summer by activating the option to buy clause included in the agreement.
The Ecuadorian will compete with the likes of Myles Lewis-Skelly and Riccardo Calafiori for minutes at left-back, while he may also cover Gabriel Magalhaes if needed.
Arriving with an impressive pedigree, having won the league with Bayer Leverkusen, Hincapie is a highly thought of versatile defender who will add physicality and an ability to overlap from full-back to Arsenal’s ranks.
The 23-year-old spent two years alongside former Gunners midfielder Granit Xhaka at Leverkusen, with the pair both contributing to the German club’s historic Bundesliga triumph in 2023/24.
Speaking to the Arsenal media team upon his arrival at London Colney, Hincapie revealed he had a conversation with the Swiss international about the North London club during their time together under Xabi Alonso.
“We’d speak a lot, but not about that,” he said.
“However, I asked him about Arsenal at one point. He spoke wonders of the club and how he felt during his spell here. I loved the conversation we had at that point, and it wasn’t recent.
“He did send me a message recently though, he always spoke well of the club and everything he went through here; he was a great captain.”
Piero Hincapie has already emulated Granit Xhaka’s career path
Xhaka moved to the Bundesliga at the age of 19, months before his 20th birthday, joining Borussia Monchengladbach after coming through the Basel academy in his homeland.
Hincapie also moved to Germany at the same age, from South America, signing for Leverkusen.
Both players then spent four seasons at their respective Bundesliga clubs, before making the switch to Arsenal at 23.
Sharing similar career paths already, Hincapie would no doubt be delighted to emulate Xhaka’s spell at Arsenal, although perhaps with slightly less turbulence in the early periods.
Xhaka spent seven years in N5, making 297 appearances, whilst captaining the club on numerous occasions.
If the Gunners can get the same out of Hincapie, he’ll prove to be excellent value for money at the reported £45 million price tag.
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