Chelsea scouts have been monitoring Bayer Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie.

What’s the word?

That is according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, who has confirmed the Blues’ interest in the Ecuador star, stating that he could well be subject to a big transfer battle with elite-level sides keeping tabs on him.

Sharing his thoughts on Chelsea’s links with the star, Romano said this in his exclusive daily briefing column: “Piero Hincapie has been scouted by many important clubs including Chelsea, Inter, Napoli, Tottenham and Spanish clubs too.

“But it’s about scouting and following the player, there’s nothing advanced about negotiations at this stage. He’s a very good, interesting centre-back and he has a chance to move in 2023.”

Entirely promising

In what has been a poor start to the season for Leverkusen, Hincapie has continued to shine in his second season of top-flight German football.

Having made 13 appearances from 15 games possible games, the defender has asserted himself as a reliable asset at the back, ranking top in comparison to the rest of the squad with his average of 1.1 blocks per 90 and placing himself in the top three among the squad for his ability in possession, having averaged 49.4 accurate passes per game across the first half of the season – an increase of exactly five passes per game in comparison to last season. 

As he continues his development, it’s fair to say that Hincapie is entirely promising. 

He could even prove to be a £34million alternative to RB Leipzig’s Josko Gvardiol, a defender that has peaked the interest of Chelsea for some time.