The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) Public Investment Fund (PIF) have reportedly held talks over potentially signing Piero Hincapie for Newcastle United.
Lauded as ‘the best young defender in Latin America‘ by Club Atletico Talleres president Andres Fassi upon his arrival to the Argentine club in 2020, Hincapie has built a real reputation for himself since moving to Bayer Leverkusen in Germany.
The 21-year-old has already played over 50 times for the Bundesliga side, including in the UEFA Champions League, and was a mainstay in the Ecuador team at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
As per Football Insider, the St. James’ Park outfit held talks on Monday over Hincapie’s possible signing, along with fellow Premier League rivals Everton.
However, a summer move may be more likely for the centre-back, who can also fill in at left-back, and Leverkusen value him in excess of £25m.
TIF thoughts on Hincapie to Newcastle…
Hincapie is one of the most promising upcoming stars in the game, and so the Magpies should be looking to snap him up early before his market value rises further.
He already ranks in the 96th percentile for dribbles completed, 93rd for progressive passes received, 91st for xAG and 89th for blocks per matches of all his positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues over the last year (FBRef), and so would add quality to the Tynesiders’ backline straight away.
Nonetheless, with the ability to play at both centre-half and at left-back, Hincapie’s versatility would be of much use to Eddie Howe in terms of the need to rotate his squad.