Chelsea want to sign Arsenal's Calafiori backup

Tom Weber

• Updated: 2 Oct 2024 16:29 BST
• 3 min read

Chelsea have been scouting Bayer Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie, according to a report.

The Ecuador international has been one of Europe's most highly-rated young defenders for some time now. The 22-year-old is coming off a mixed season and it was a surprise that he stayed on board at Bayer over the summer.

Hincapie lost his guaranteed starting spot at the beginning of Leverkusen's triumphant 2023/24 season but eventually reclaimed his place when defenders Edmond Tapsoba and Odilon Kossounou were at AFCON in the winter.

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A versatile defender who can play at centre-back and left-back, Hincapie had no shortage of suitors in the summer, but the Bundesliga champions were desperate to keep hold of him.

Liverpool are long-time admirers of Hincapie and The Athletic revealed in the summer that Arsenal viewed him as a backup option had they failed to land top target Riccardo Calafiori.

Chelsea scout Hincapie

So far this term, Hincapie has started all but two of Bayer 04's games and he was again present from the beginning when the double winners beat AC Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday.

According to TBR Football, Chelsea scouts were in attendance at the BayArena to watch the Ecuadorian in action. Despite boasting plenty of left-sided defenders, the report claims that the Blues are keen to bolster that side of the backline.

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It is asserted that left-backs Ben Chilwell and Marc Cucurella as well as centre-back Benoit Badiashile do not have a long-term future at the club and that Hincapie is seen as an ideal replacement.

The report also states that the club's representatives will also have kept an eye on Milan's Theo Hernandez as he, too, is a player of interest to the Blues. Hernandez and Hincapie are still under contract until 2026 and 2027, respectively.