BREAKING NEWS: I intend to make the deal permanent but what Zubimendi told me today have completely changed my mind, there’s no way I’ll make this deal permanent anymore”, Hincanpie reveals what Zubimendi told him in training today that really provoked him
Piero Hincapie‘s permanent transfer to Arsenal was reportedly pre-agreed last summer with the defender joining Arsenal on an initial loan deal.
Football insider Hand of Arsenal reports that during talks last summer it was pre-agreed that Piero Hincapie will become a permanent Arsenal player upon the completion of this season’s loan spell.
Personal terms are in place on a five-year permanent deal, and Hincapie will move onto that deal at the end of the current campaign.
The structure of the deal as an initial loan was purely for accounting purposes, as we reported last summer.
LONDON, ENGLAND: Piero Hincapie of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur at Emirates Stadium on November 23, 2025.
With both Hincapie’s loan to Arsenal and Jakub Kiwior‘s loan to FC Porto, the Gunners came up with a creative way to ensure that all three clubs could feel confident that the deals would go through, without including formal obligations in the contracts that would require the transfers to be accounted for this season.
Given Arsenal, Porto, and Bayer Leverkusen all wanted to account for the deals next summer, a normal obligation wasn’t suitable.
Instead, they agreed that both clubs involved in each deal would hold options to make the deal permanent. Meaning that if Arsenal activate their option for Hincapie, Leverkusen can’t stop the deal going through, and if Porto activate their option, Arsenal can’t stop that, either.
Technically, this leaves open the possibility that neither club will activate the option. That uncertainty means it can’t be accounted for this year.
But, in reality, given how well Hincapie has adapted, Arsenal will still want to activate the option to tie him down.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND: A tattoo reading ‘God is Love’ on the neck of Piero Hincapie of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Everton and Arsenal at Hill Dickinson Stadium on
So, there is not much doubt that Hincapie will ultimately become an permanent Arsenal player, but it’s not set in stone, just yet.
The good news is that he’s looking like a good signing right now, impressing again in midweek in his 17th Premier League start of the campaign, with his 29th appearance coming against Mansfield Town in the FA Cup.
The Gunners’ hard work to get the deal done on terms that suited all parties seems to be paying off.
