Arsenal spent £263m last summer but their best signing this season has cost nothing yet

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Arsenal backed Mikel Arteta to the hilt last summer and the pressure is on the Gunners boss to bring home a big trophy.

With just weeks of the season remaining, Arsenal have a chance to do that. They sit atop the Premier League and also have a Champions League semi-final to win.

Over the course of the season, big money signings like Eberechi Eze, Viktor Gyokeres and Martin Zubimendi have delivered in patches.

However, while there have been flashes of brilliance from all of the £263m worth of talent Arsenal splashed out on, it’s hard to argue against their best signing being one that cost nothing.

Piero Hincapie is Arsenal’s best signing this season

At the time of Arsenal signing Piero Hincapie, there were some eyebrows raised among fans as to if he’d genuinely improve the starting XI.

Over the course of the season, though, Hincapie has shown he has done just that.

Cementing the left-back spot as his own with Myles Lewis-Skelley struggling and Riccardo Calafiori getting injuries, Hincapie has played 33 times this season already.

Signed on loan with Arsenal having an option to buy, he’s already proven a smart addition and the £45m clause to buy him permanently now looks a bargain.

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In terms of the stats to back up how good he’s been, Hincapie can do just that.

He’s won a total of 67% of his aerial duels, showing a dominance in a key area for any defender.

Impressively, he’s only been dribbled past 12 times all season, while in terms of ball recoveries when he does find himself tracking back, he’s made 59 successful attempts, averaging just under five a game.

Another impressive stat for Hincapie comes in his clearances made, where he’s on 85 for the season in the league at an average of nearly six per game.

For comparison, all the above metrics score higher than Arsenal’s star defender, William Saliba, showcasing just how effective Hincapie can be.

Put simply, Arsenal have no reason to even try and get out of signing him permanently.

And once they do, they’ll have secured a top defender at both left and centre-back for years to come.