Piero Hincapié: ex-Talleres star shines at Leverkusen, nears Arsenal | OneFootball

At 23 years old and with a solid presence in European football, Piero Hincapié is on the radar of several Premier League giants as the transfer market reaches its final stretch. Arsenal has already initiated concrete negotiations to acquire the Ecuadorian central defender, formerly of Talleres de Córdoba, while Chelsea and Tottenham are closely monitoring the situation.

The defender's release clause is set at 60 million euros and is valid until the upcoming September 1st. The team led by Mikel Arteta — which includes Gabriel Heinze in its coaching staff — has already opened formal talks with Bayer Leverkusen, a club that, for now, has no intention of negotiating below that amount.

From England, it is explained that the departure of Polish player Jakub Kiwior to Porto and the future of Oleksandr Zinchenko could accelerate the Ecuadorian's arrival in London. Meanwhile, Hincapié himself may have already decided to seek a change of scenery, although everything depends on a club paying the amount specified in his contract.

Despite interest from several teams, Leverkusen remains firm: it will not entertain offers below the clause. This forces the defender to wait for the full amount to be executed if he wants to secure his departure in this transfer window.

Last weekend, the player was at the center of an image that went viral worldwide. Following Leverkusen's surprising 2-1 home defeat to Hoffenheim at the start of the Bundesliga, Hincapié left the field in tears, which many interpreted as a farewell.

His story with Talleres does not go unnoticed in Argentine football. He arrived in Córdoba from Independiente del Valle in 2020 for one million dollars for 50% of his transfer rights. Just a year later, after playing 22 matches, he was transferred to German football for a figure close to nine million dollars, in one of the most significant sales for the club.

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