Piero Hincapie’s preference is to join Arsenal despite Tottenham Hotspur interest | OneFootball

Arsenal are working on a deal to sign Bayer Leverkusen defender and Tottenham Hotspur target Piero Hincapie, according to The Athletic journalist David Ornstein.

The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium club are willing to sign him on loan with an obligation to buy for around €60 million, but Hincapie’s preference is to join Arsenal.

Missing out on the Ecuador international to the Gunners will be another significant blow for Spurs after their rivals pipped them to Eberechi Eze last week.

Hincapie has featured prominently on Arsenal’s recruitment lists for some time, and Tottenham are likely to lose the race to them again.

Spurs have been in talks over a loan deal, but their bitter rivals could look to secure a permanent move, which would appeal more to the Bundesliga club.

They have to look elsewhere if they want defensive reinforcements before the end of the summer transfer window, and more targets could emerge in the coming days.

Tottenham have started the 2025-26 Premier League campaign impressively, securing a 3-0 win over Burnley on the opening weekend and a 2-0 victory over Manchester City on Saturday away from home.

They are not done in the market as manager Thomas Franks wants depth at the back to challenge across all competitions this term.

Hincapie would be a solid addition to their defence given his versatility, experience and quality, but Arsenal are likely to sign him.

The Gunners need to move players out before they can sign the Bundesliga title winner, and failure to do that could give Spurs a chance of signing him.

Arsenal have enough depth at the back after signing Cristhian Mosquera this summer, and many people will be surprised that they want to add Hincapie to their squad.

The Ecuadorian would struggle to play ahead of Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba at the Emirates Stadium club, and moving to Tottenham could be a more intelligent decision.