Piero Hinkopie, ‘South America’s Most Talented Defender’ (19) shines at the Bundesliga
Together with Cole, Voetbalzone continues to highlight young players who may go a long way in the future or young players who are already earning their inspiration in (top) International Top Football. This time, the focus is on 19-year-old central defender Piero Hincapié, who shone in an Ecuadorian shirt during the Copa America last summer. Bayer Leverkusen signed Mandekker until the summer of 2026 after paying six million euros to club Atlético Talleres for the summer tournament.
This is another example of how big the gap between Bayern Munich is when Bayern Munich beat Bayern Leverkusen 5-1 in a match between the leaders of the Bundesliga shared on October 17. Adventure Champion Others nationally. However, in the early weeks of the new season it was often overlooked how clever Bayer Leverkusen was to keep pace with Bayern. Coach Gerardo Seoane’s team was particularly solid until that big defeat in the Defense Alliance arena.
Sports director Simon Rolfes had to close last summer after brothers Sven and Lars Bender ended their football careers and defender Alexander Dragovic left for Red Star Belgrade. The rupture of Edmund Tapsopa’s ankle ligament gave Zion even more headaches. Burkina Faso’s prowess marked his major turning point in 2020 as a central defender at Bayer Leverkusen. Did it make Bayer’s defense the team’s Achilles heel? Absolutely not. Worker The first six Bundesliga went into the game against Bayern, conceding just six goals.
If Bayer Leverkusen coach Julian Knucklesman’s team had not had any new skills, it would have provided more resistance. He returned to Germany late due to international obligations with Ecuador, forcing Hinckapi to miss the match in Bavaria. Given the big impression the blocker has had since coming to Bayernna last summer, there is no doubt that he would have brought more stability to the defense. Leverkusen have only lost once this season on the Hincapié field, winning six of the nine games he has played. Central defender moved from Argentine club Atlético Talleres in August for around six million euros.
Some would say that keeping 19-year-old defender Robert Lewandowski, Serge Knabry and Thomas Mல்லller from scoring too much is too much, but Hinkeppe has already shown throughout his life that he has the ability to face the best attackers in the world. . In Ecuador’s final selection for the Copa America, youth was a part of the international competition for his name. He was immediately in the starting lineup in the opening game against Colombia. Hinkobi played every minute on the way to the quarterfinals. Against Lionel Messi, Roberto Firmino and Vinicius Jr., the midfielder showed himself with some amazing performances.
Pyro # Emphasis Focuses @EuropaLeague! ????# B04Betis I # SomosBayer04 pic.twitter.com/i8vwsOQzZP
– Bayer 04 Leverkusen (ay bayer04_es) November 4, 2021
“We’ve been taking care of him for a long time,” Rolf’s Bayer said on Leverkusen’s website. “His excellent performances against world-class players entirely in Copa America confirmed our assessment that Piero has a promising future.” Hincobe began his football education at local clubs CS Norde America and Deportivo Asokus, before being selected by the Independente del Valle at the age of fourteen. Here he came to play at the best youth academy of Ecuador football.
Hincapié stood out as an outstanding modern central defender and his ability to bring the ball to his feet was one of his strengths. This was also evident in Copa America, where he delivered the most forward passes of any defender in the group (89) and was very quiet when in possession. At six feet, the young man has to work harder than other center packs to win aerial duels, but he is able to make up for a lot with his physical strength.
Hincapié made his professional debut for the Independente in August 2019, leading the Ecuadorian under-17 team to fourth place in the South American Championship earlier that year. However, he will only make two more appearances for his former club before being selected by club Atletico Dolores in the summer of 2020. “He is the most talented defender in South America,” said Andres Fossi, President of the United States.
Considering that status, it is not surprising that center-back appeared on the radars of many top European clubs a year later. Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan and Atlético Madrid are all affiliated with Hincapié. However, it was not until mid-2026 that Leverkusen became firm. Ecuador is not only impressed with the defensive game. By scoring the first professional goal of his career against Celtic (0-4 victory) in the Europa League, he has proven that he can contribute to the attack.
“He was very calm, made the right choices on the field and won a lot of fights. Of course that was not his main job,” Zion said excitedly after the Europa League match. Leverkusen could be a step towards becoming Hincapié a truly well-known name in the future. “I want to play in Spain,” he said in an interview when he played in South America. “Until then, I have to go to smaller clubs to go upstairs.”
Leverkusen can be considered one of those small clubs. The Bundesliga club is less popular than Real Madrid, Barcelona or Bayern. But if Hinkepia can maintain the form he showed in his early months at the club, he could still help Leverkusen challenge the European powers.
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