Everton close to third summer signing

Everton are closing in on a deal to sign Colombia defender Yerry Mina from Barcelona for a fee in the region of £28million.

Catalan daily Sport reports that Mina will sign a five-year deal at Goodison Park and become Marco Silva’s third signing of the summer.

Mina has been the subject of much rumour and conjecture over the summer but Sport is Barcelona’s biggest sports paper so is likely to have decent contacts.

Sky Sports reporter Alan Myers urged caution shortly after the news broke, stressing a deal wasn’t quite done yet. However, he suggested Everton’s good relationship with Barcelona could stand them in good stead when it comes to negotiations.

Everton made Mina their number one defensive target all summer but negotiations have been slow, with reported interest from Manchester United and Lyon also complicating matters.

Lyon could offer Mina Champions League football but would struggle to match the finances on offer in the Premier League.

But with Manchester United seemingly ending their interest, Everton have moved quickly to try and seal the deal.

Getting Mina over the line would be a welcome start to the final week of the transfer window for the Toffees.

The team has struggled for results in pre-season and have looked decidedly shaky at the back. Age seems to be catching up with Phil Jagielka and Leighton Baines while Michael Keane continues to struggle.

The arrival of Mina and Lucas Digne should go a long way to solidifying the defence but I still feel another centre back is needed before the deadline.

It’s set to be a hectic and potentially pivotal few days.