Hincapie Return Set To Bolster Arsenal Ahead Of Everton Clash

Piero Hincapie is set to return to action this weekend following his extended period of time on the sideline after his recent ankle injury. 

The 24 year-old injured his ankle under unusual circumstances, following a warm down after Arsenal had defeated Leeds United in matchday 5 of the Premier League. The Ecuardorian subsequently had to be carried off the Emirates Stadium pitch by goalkeeper Illan Meslier. 

Hincapie, whose Arsenal transfer was made permanent over the summer from Bayer Leverkusen for a fee of £34.5million, has ended up missing The Gunners’ last three fixtures, including the 3-0 win over LOSC Lille, the 0-1 victory at The City Ground over Nottingham Forest and the 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich at The Allianz Arena. 

The versatile defender has only played a total of 160 minutes in all competitions so far in the 2026/27 campaign, with three cameo performances in the Premier League totalling just 40 of those minutes. He did start and play his only 90 minutes of the season so far in the 0-1 victory in the opening matchday of the Champions League campaign against Napoli, in which he was part of a hard fought clean sheet for Mikel Arteta’s side. 

Mikel Arteta has tended to favour Riccardo Calafiori and Ben White on either flank, with Jurrien Timber also receiving minutes since his return from an injury of his own. Hincapie has been used largely as a ‘finisher’ so far this season, but his likely inclusion in the matchday squad this weekend against Everton will only further improve the mood of the boss, with his options at fullback now back to full strength as the club slowly but surely enter into the busy festive period. 

Hincapie has enjoyed his start to life at Arsenal, helping The Gunners to win the Premier League title for the first time in 22 years in his first season at the club. Last season, the Ecuaradorian played nearly 3000 minutes of football in all competition, knocking up 25 appearances in the Premier League in his debut season, in which he scored a single goal in the 2-2 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers and provided two assists. 

Although he has been surplus to requirements so far this season, there is no doubt minutes will come. With Arsenal looking to attack all four competitions, he will hope that when the opportunity presents itself, he takes it with both hands. If so, Mikel Arteta will have a serious selection headache to contend with, with the depth Arsenal possess at fullback. An issue that the Spaniard will be happy about though, no doubt. 

In the meantime, his likely squad inclusion on Saturday afternoon against Everton is a major positive for Arsenal with Christos Tzolis and William Saliba also coming to the end of their extended periods on the sideline with injury. The Arsenal squad is slowly but surely, returning to full strength. Though, the injury to Bukayo Saka on Wednesday evening will have put those hopes on hold for now.