Liverpool have joined the race to sign Bayer Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie.
The Reds have reportedly been on the hunt for a defensive addition all summer long. With a left-sided centre-back said to be the preference, a number of names have been put forward.
So far though, no decisive action has been taken on any of them. But according to German outlet Fussball Transfers, that could be about to change.
They claim that Liverpool are now ‘involved’ in the scramble to extract Hincapie from Leverkusen. As a result of the Ecuadorian having ‘admirers’ at Anfield, he’s now firmly on the Reds’ radar.
They’ll reportedly face competition from West Ham though, who are said to have already spoken to Leverkusen about the possibility of striking a deal.
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Other, unnamed Premier League sides are also claimed to have made their interest in Hincapie known. Meanwhile, RB Leipzig have cooled their own desires to sign the 21-year-old, having brought in Castello Lukeba from Lyon.
Hincapie hasn’t featured in pre-season for Leverkusen, with a metatarsal injury ruling him out until September. However, this seems unlikely to stop a transfer. It’s said to be a possibility that the Ecuador international will leave in the final weeks of the window.
Liverpool interested in Hincapie
As Liverpool search for the right player to add to their defensive options, Hincapie could well be perfect.
Described as ‘hard as nails’ by Fussball Transfers, he’s a defender with huge potential.
Crucially, from Liverpool’s point of view, the Leverkusen man is a left-footer. As they search for a potential long-term successor to Virgil van Dijk, that seems to be important to them.
And when compared to Van Dijk, Hincapie actually stands up very well. As per squawka.com’s ‘Comparison Matrix,’ the former Independiente del Valle man actually made more successful tackles than the Reds captain last season.
That obviously isn’t the only thing Liverpool will be looking at, far from it. But it’s impressive nonetheless.
One thing that may make the Reds wary though – unfortunately – is the identity of Hincapie’s agent. The youngster is represented by the same people who handle Moises Caicedo.
With Liverpool having been supposedly burned so badly by Caicedo’s agents recently, perhaps they’ll think twice about doing business with them again. That would be a real shame, as Hincapie would appear to tick plenty of boxes.