Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly submitted a cheeky verbal offer worth €25 million for Bayer Leverkusen centre-back Piero Hincapie.
According to German outlet Bild, Tottenham Hotspur have made a verbal €25 million bid to sign Bayer Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie as Antonio Conte looks to shore up his defence in the final days of the transfer window.
Tottenham have endured a slow January transfer window compared to this time last season. But it has picked up steam in the last few days. The north Londoners have already strengthened their roster this month with the loan capture of Arnaut Danjuma from Villarreal under the noses of Everton earlier this week.
They remain active to make further signings before the January transfer window slams shut, though, and have shifted all of their focus on sorting out their defence and wing-back rosters. The majority of the window at Tottenham has been occupied by a potential defensive signing of Sporting CP’s highly-rated Pedro Porro. It now looks likely that they will get that one over the line, with their perseverance in the pursuit paying off.
Conte is eager to sign a new central defender, with a left-footed one certainly being ideal. Tottenham currently have Clement Lenglet on loan from Barcelona. But the Frenchman will return to his parent club at the end of the 2022/23 season after failing to impress much in his short stint.
It seems as though the Italian coach may soon get his wish of a late defensive addition. And Tottenham have opened the bidding for Hincapie with an offer of around €25 million, although their low-ball bid falls way short of Leverkusen’s asking price.
The versatile Bayer Leverkusen defender has been heavily linked with Tottenham ever since starring for Ecuador at the World Cup. The 21-year-old centre-back has also made quite a name for himself with his performances for club and country in the last 12 months or so.
He has settled seamlessly to life in the Bundesliga and has made 53 senior appearances for Leverkusen to date, with Conte said to be a big fan of the young defender. Hincapie can operate as a centre-back as well as a left-back. And he could prove to be a quality acquisition for Tottenham in the long run.
The youngster has tremendous potential and can develop into one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League. The opportunity to join the Premier League outfit and a world-class manager like Conte could be an exciting prospect for the South American enforcer, who is reportedly open to the idea of switching to Tottenham.
However, Bayer Leverkusen have no intentions to sell him in the middle of the season and have slapped a huge price tag on the defender’s proverbial head to fend off potential suitors. It will be interesting to see if Tottenham can agree on a deal with the German club now. Leverkusen rate the prized asset very highly and could demand a premium price for his services if they were to sell him this late in the transfer window.
