Arsenal reach final decision on completing Barcelona transfer in January – multiple sources

Two separate sources have confirmed whether or not Arsenal will give the greenlight to a surprise January transfer involving Barcelona.

The Gunners are cruising towards a second successive Premier League title, and in truth, the only thing that can stop them is themselves.

Injuries, poor navigation of the January transfer window, or perhaps both combined may be the only hope Manchester City, Liverpool and Brighton have of forcing a genuine title race.

And over the past few days, numerous reports have confirmed Barcelona will be busy in the upcoming winter window, and an Arsenal ace is in their sights.

Amid a spate of defensive injuries, Barcelona plan to enter the market for a left-footed centre-back.

The likes of Alessandro Bastoni, Josko Gvardiol and Lisandro Martinez are on their radar, but of far more interest to Arsenal fans is Barca’s admiration of Piero Hincapie.

The Ecuador international has primarily been used at left-back since moving to north London, but this season, he’s playing second fiddle to Riccardo Calafiori.

Hincapie hasn’t started a single game in the Premier League this term, and the idea of Barcelona trying to swap Alejandro Balde for Hincapie, or simply signing Hincapie in a straightforward deal, has been touted.

However, Fabrizio Romano and the latest from Football Insider’s Pete O’Rourke both state the same – Arsenal have no intention of losing such a critical depth piece.

Arsenal won’t sabotage themselves by selling under-used Piero Hincapie

On Wednesday morning, O’Rourke declared: ‘Arsenal have no intention of selling centre-back Piero Hincapie in the January window.’

He added: ‘The Ecuador international is attracting significant interest from Barcelona of late, but the Gunners have no intention of letting him out the door.

‘Mikel Arteta is determined to retain the depth in his squad, and is keen to ensure he has two top-quality players in every position.’

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That update came on the back of Romano’s similar assessment of Hincapie’s situation a few days ago.

He explained on his YouTube channel: “I don’t see this (a move to Barcelona) happening for one reason – Arsenal have no intention to sell Hincapie.

“Arsenal have no intention to change anything in their back four for the January transfer window. They are super happy with the players they have.

“I think the conversation should be on one of the best defences in the recent history of the game because Arsenal are really incredible with their way of defending, and so Hincapie can play as a centre-back and as a left-back.

“He’s a very important player for Mikel Arteta and so I don’t see this one happening.”

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