Arsenal agree fee for Piero Hincapie

Bayer Leverkusen and Arsenal have agreed a fee for defender Piero Hincapie, for a total £37.5 million, £30 million of which will be paid immediately, £2.5 million performance-based and the final £5 million in installments. Arsenal appear to have won the race for Hincapie from right under the noses of their rivals Tottenham once more, with the Ecuadorian defender to fly to England for talks on Wednesday.

As Jakub Kiwior looks set to leave Arsenal for Porto in the coming week, there will be a space in the Gunners' squad left to fill and in Piero Hincapie they will be buying a like-for-like alternative. Hincapie can play at left-back or centre-back, and is left-footed, much like Kiwior, so offers a lot of options for Mikel Arteta in his defensive line.

Spurs had reportedly been locked in talks with Bayer Leverkusen for several weeks, with Daniel Levy negotiating over reduction of 2.5 million euros on the pricetag for Hincapie. Arsenal matched the price tag of the defender yesterday, and Erik Ten Hag's team immediately accepted the offer, rejecting Tottenham's bid.

It is understood that Bayer Leverkusen will acquire Equi Fernandez with the funds that will be received for the sale of Hincapie.