Arsenal completed the permanent signing of Ecuador defender Piero Hincapié on Thursday ahead of his country’s crucial group match against Germany at the World Cup.
Hincapié met the conditions for a full-time contract with the English champion during last season’s loan deal with the team from Bayer Leverkusen. He will be an Arsenal player officially from Wednesday.
The 24-year-old Hincapié made 39 appearances in all competitions for Arsenal last season, mainly sharing left back duties with Riccardo Calafiori.
Hincapié played the full match in each of Ecuador’s first two group fixtures at the World Cup — a 1-0 loss to Ivory Coast and a 0-0 draw with Curaçao.
Reporting by the Associated Press.
