Everton defender, Yerry Mina has returned to first-team training ahead of the toffees trip to London to face in-form Fulham, managed by former EFC manager, Marco Silva. The Colombian picked up an injury in his side’s 1st game of the season, a 1-0 loss to Chelsea at Goodison Park and has only now reached the final stages of his recovery process.
Ahead of the current Premier League season, it was believed that Mina would play a pivotal part in Frank Lampard’s side, playing in a defensive partnership with summer signing, James Tarkowski for much of pre-season and sometimes even in a back three with either Mason Holgate or Ben Godfrey.
However, this belief was short-lived. The 28-year-old did start Everton’s first Premier League game of the season but was taken off the pitch after 70 minutes after picking up an injury.
Everton defender Yerry Mina has now returned to first team training after overcoming an injury he sustained against Chelsea on the opening day of the season 🔵 pic.twitter.com/OnqUifjwPF
— The Bobble (@ElBobble) October 28, 2022
His injury alongside fellow centre-back Ben Godfrey’s injury in the same match led to Frank Lampard completing the signing of Wolves captain, Conor Coady on loan for the season.
Since then, Coady and Tarkowski have created one of the best defensive partnerships in the Premier League. Even though the Colombian is returning to the squad, it will surely be a major challenge to fight his way back into the starting 11.
Although Yerry Mina has been described multiple times as ‘Everton’s best defender on his day’, his time on Merseyside has been plagued with injuries. Marco Silva brought the Colombian to the Premier League in 2018 after his excellent World Cup performance, but he only managed 13 appearances all season. He would, however, manage 29 league appearances the season after, but since then has only played 38 times in the last 3 seasons combined.
The rapid rise to success of Everton’s current centre-back partnership has led to Mina being linked to several moves away from England, with AC Milan currently said to be holding the strongest interest in the defender.
The return of Yerry Mina to Frank Lampard’s squad will obviously still be a massive benefit to his side, with the 28-year-old having a massive presence in the dressing room. However, his participation for the rest of the season, unless Conor Coady and James Tarkowski pick up injuries, is likely to be minimal.