Yerry Mina recalls his fleeting time at Barça and the bad relationship with Valverde

Yerry Mina signed for FC Barcelona in the 2017-2018 season, having a brief spell with the team, as he would sign for Everton just six months after his arrival in Catalonia. The Colombian defender only managed to play 5 matches in LaLiga and 1 in the Copa del Rey, totaling 377 minutes with the 'culé' team.

In that sense, the man from Guachené failed to fit into the plans of the then 'azulgrana' coach, Ernesto Valverde. The 'txingurri' only considered him as an occasional replacement for Gerard Piqué and Samuel Umtiti, who were regulars in the center of the 'culé' defense that season.

Yerry Mina, marginalized by Ernesto Valverde at Barça

The current defender of the Italian Cagliari opened up about his time with the 'azulgrana' team in an interview for 'La Gazzetta dello Sport': "Valverde only spoke to me on the first day. For seven months he didn't say a word to me. Despite winning La Liga and the Copa, I played very little and suffered a foot injury after a foul by Rakitic in training," recalled the defender.

At the beginning of 2018, the Spanish coach spoke about why the player was not seeing minutes with the first team. "I have four center-backs and I usually take three in the squad. Piqué and Umtiti are the ones who usually play. When he has come on, Vermaelen (Thomas) has performed at a great level and Yerry Mina joined later".

The lack of communication that the Spanish strategist had and the lack of minutes in the team led to the veteran's departure to English football in the summer of that year. For Barça, it was a very profitable operation, as Mina arrived for 12.4 million euros and was transferred for 30.2 'kilos' six months later.

Serie A and the Premier League, destinations for Yerry Mina after leaving Barça

After his departure, the 30-year-old has worn the shirts of Everton of England, Fiorentina and Cagliari, teams of the Serie A of Italy. He has played the most with the 'Toffees' and the 'rossoblu', who have given him full confidence to lead the central defense.

With the English team he played a total of 6,373 minutes in 5 seasons, scoring 9 goals in 99 matches. His first season was very difficult as he had few opportunities, however, he gradually consolidated himself in the defense until he earned a starting place.

In his last two seasons he lost the confidence of the coaching staff, so he was relegated to a secondary role, which led to his departure from the club in the summer of 2023, at 'zero cost' despite being one of the 'veterans' of the squad.

At Fiorentina he was barely taken into account, playing only 7 matches and accumulating only 186 minutes in half a season. He was later transferred to Cagliari in the winter market, at the beginning of 2024.

There he would regain continuity, totaling 3,884 minutes in a season and a half (46 matches), starting as a starter in 25/26. Beyond his physical irregularity and dressing room problems, Yerry Mina has managed to have an interesting career in Europe, in addition to remaining a reference for the Colombian national team heading to the 2026 World Cup.