"We are very happy to have been able to bring in a young yet very self-confident central defender with international experience in Piero Hincapie," declared sporting director Simon Rolfes. "Of course, we've watched him for a while. His very good performances against absolute world-class players at the big continental tournament in South America have confirmed us in our assessment that Piero has a very promising future. He fits in with Bayer 04 and we are convinced he will be an important player for us."
Sporting managing director Rudi Völler described the 1.84 metre tall left-footer as "a ball winner, intelligent and technically gifted. This transfer completely fits in with Bayer Leverkusen," said Völler. "Piero Hincapie is a highly talented player who has the quality to immediately strengthen our squad and, at the same time, can improve even further and reach an absolute top level."
That is exactly the target for the young Ecuadorian who will wear the number 33 shirt for the Werkself. "It's a great feeling for me that a club like Bayer 04 Leverkusen made such an effort to sign me. The Bundesliga and Bayer 04 have an outstanding reputation in my own country and in the whole of South America," said Hincapie. "Now I'm here and it's fantastic and I want to further improve my level in football to the benefit of the club. We have a great team who I'd like to help with good performances."
Return leg in London: tonight, Thursday 18 April (kick-off 21:00 CEST), the Werkself visit West Ham United. All the information you need on the UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg at the London Stadium is in the Matchday News.
Show moreAfter the week’s celebrations of the club’s first ever league title, Bayer 04 are now focused once again on their UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg away at West Ham United on Thursday (kick-off: 9pm CEST). The Werkself are in a good position with a 2-0 lead from the first game, but it’s not over yet, as head coach Xabi Alonso and midfielder Granit Xhaka stressed at their pre-match press conference in London on Wednesday evening.
Show moreThe German Football League (DFL) has launched the vote for the Bundesliga Team of the Season. As of now, fans of the Werkself can select no fewer than eight Bayer 04 players in the top XI of the 2023/24 campaign: on the shortlist are Lukas Hradecky, Jonathan Tah, Jeremie Frimpong, Alejandro Grimaldo, Granit Xhaka, Exequiel Palacios, Florian Wirtz and Victor Boniface. Voting closes on Monday 22 April at 9:00 CEST.
Show moreBayer 04 Women have the chance to surpass their points total from last season with three games remaining in the Google Pixel Bundesliga as they visit RB Leipzig for Matchday 19 on Friday (kick-off: 6.30pm CEST). Victory against the promoted side would take Robert de Pauw’s team onto 31 points, one more than they managed in their 22 fixtures in 2022/23.
Show moreIn contrast to the Werkself, West Ham United didn’t experience an exhilarating Sunday at the weekend: for the first time in 23 years, the Hammers lost the London derby at home to Fulham in the Premier League. This Thursday, 18 April (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), West Ham will now be looking to overturn the 2-0 first-leg deficit in the UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg against Bayer 04.
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