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Powerhouse centre-back Yerry Mina joined Everton from Barcelona in August 2018.
Colombia defender Mina was one of the standout performers in that summer’s World Cup finals, his dramatic last-minute goal against England one of three he scored in the tournament.
A foot problem delayed Mina's Everton debut until November 2018 but the South American's polished display on his first start belied his recent inaction, the player claiming man-of-the-match honours for his part in shutting out Chelsea in a scoreless draw at Stamford Bridge.
Mina retained his spot for Everton's next five matches but had his progress disrupted by a handful of minor niggles. He featured 15 times for the Club in all competitions in 2018/19 and scored his first Everton goal in a 5-1 Boxing Day demolition of Burnley.
The player saw much more action in his second season, starting 25 Premier League games and coming on as a substitute in four. Both of Mina's goals in the campaign came at Watford, clawing back a two-goal deficit and leaving the stage clear for Theo Walcott to complete a thrilling come-from-behind win in stoppage time.
He made 29 appearances in all competitions in 2020/21, scoring three goals, including one to win a Goodison Park league game against Arsenal.
Injuries thwarted Mina at various turns in the following campaign – his fourth with the Club – when he was limited to only 14 appearances, 11 from the start.
When he did feature, however, Mina burnished a reputation as a colossus of a centre-half. He was espeically imperious in a frantic 1-0 home win over Chelsea on the first day of May that proved the catalyst for Everton's climb out of trouble.
Mina additionally had the honour of scoring the first goal of Frank Lampard's reign as manager.
He leapt to connect with a Demarai Gray corner to put Everton in front against Brentford in an FA Cup tie Lampard's team would win 4-1 on 5 February 2022.
Mina won the Brazilian league title with Palmeiras in 2016 and was part of a league and cup double-winning campaign at Barcelona.
He signed for his first professional team Deportivo Pasto aged 18 in 2012 and made his senior debut the following year.
Mina was lured to illustrious Bogota club Independiente Santa Fe on an initial loan deal in December 2013 and joined permanently 12 months later. He stayed with the capital team until May 2016. The athletic defender, who had been capped 15 times by his country at the time of his arrival on Merseyside, was a mainstay of the Santa Fe side which won the Copa Sudamericana – South America’s Europa League equivalent – in 2015.
He scored eight goals in 84 appearances for the club and was on target when Santa Fe overcame Atletico Nacional to win the Superliga Colombiana, the success which secured their passage into the Copa Sudamericana.
Mina left his homeland for Brazilian team Palmeiras in May 2016 and quickly became a cornerstone of the side which won the Sao Paulo club’s first league title in 22 years. His imperious form saw him included in the Serie A team of the season.
The player's consistent excellence at the heart of Palmeiras’s defence made him hot property and it was five-times European champions Barcelona who prised him away from Brazil in January 2018.
He partnered fellow summer Everton arrival Lucas Digne in the middle of the Catalans’ defence on his full debut the following month. The pair shutout Getafe in a scoreless draw, notable for Barca’s 79-per-cent share of possession.
Mina featured in Barcelona’s Copa del Rey semi-final success at Valencia as manager Ernesto Valverde’s team dominated their domestic scene to land both major Spanish trophies.
The 24-year-old won his first full international cap one month after moving to Brazil. He captained his country in a friendly match with China after Colombia secured their place in the Russian World Cup and scored in all three of his appearances in the competition.
Mina was on target in group stage victories over Poland and Senegal. And his towering stoppage-time header sent Colombia’s last-16 clash with England into extra-time – only for the South American side to be eliminated on penalties.
No defender has scored more than Mina’s three goals in a World Cup finals tournament.
His Colombia team were eliminated at the quarter-finals stage of the 2019 Copa America tournament in Brazil despite not conceding a goal in four matches.
They drew 0-0 with Chile in the last-eight but lost 5-4 on penalties after Mina converted his team's fourth kick.
Contracted Until: June 2023