Ecuador international defender Piero Hincapie became Arsenal’s final summer signing and the Bayer Leverkusen loanee has spoken after completing his deadline day move
Arsenal rounded off their summer transfer business on deadline day, bringing in Piero Hincapie on an initial loan. He joins the likes of Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi and Ebere Eze to round off a £250m summer at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners were also able to clear some deadwood, with some money coming in immediately and more to follow. Albert Sambi Lokonga left permanently for Hamburg, and Fabio Vieira could end up doing the same if his loan is successful, while Reiss Nelson, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Jakub Kiwior also clinched loan moves away.
Now comes the international break, and time for Mikel Arteta to reflect on Sunday’s defeat at Liverpool. That result left the reigning champions as the only side with a 100 percent record in the Premier League, with Arteta’s Gunners down in third behind Chelsea.
When the Gunners return, they’ll have Champions League football on the horizon. A trip to Bilbao awaits, with Athletic Club hosting Arteta’s men in between a pair of home league games for Arsenal against Nottingham Forest and Manchester City.
Before that, we’ve got some words from Hincapie and a bit more on the Gunners’ window. Here are Mirror Football‘s latest lines from around the Emirates Stadium.
READ MORE: Every Premier League transfer completed AFTER deadline with blockbuster deal still expectedREAD MORE: Arsenal phone call saw star refuse to play while on team bus – he tried to force transfer
Hincapie opens up on Xhaka talks
Piero Hincapie has admitted he asked Granit Xhaka about Arsenal before making his move to North London. The pair spent two seasons together at Bayer Leverkusen, with Xhaka leaving for Sunderland earlier in the window.
“We’d speak a lot but not about [Arsenal]. However, I asked him about Arsenal at one point, and I queried him about how things were here,” the defender told club media.
“He spoke wonders about the club and how he felt during his spell here. I loved the conversation that we had at that point, and it wasn’t that recent. He did send me a message recently, though. He always spoke well of the club.”
Transfer window winners and losers
Arsenal spent big in the summer window, forking out around £250m across a number of positions. They weren’t the only big spenders, though, with Liverpool breaking the British transfer window not once but twice.
On the other end of the scale, there were some deals which didn’t go through and some players and clubs left frustrated. Even after huge outlays, there was disappointment from a fair few fanbases.
So, who had the best window and who had the worst? Mirror Football’s writers have given their verdict at the end of a very busy window.
Arteta questioned after Liverpool defeat
Paul Scholes questioned Mikel Arteta’s ability to take Arsenal to the next level after watching the Gunners lose to Liverpool on Sunday. After beginning the season with back-to-back wins, Arteta’s team drew a blank in their 1-0 reverse at Anfield.
“Mikel Arteta has turned Arsenal around. He’s done a great job to get them to where they are now, but the question is, is he capable of taking them to the next level?” Scholes asked on The Overlap Fan Debate, brought to you by Sky Bet.
“We spoke about this with Gareth Southgate and England – he did brilliant taking them to finals, but we didn’t think he was capable of winning tournaments with England. Arsenal are not quite ready. It was a great chance to play your new players and make a statement.
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Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
