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What’s the story?
Barcelona have completed the signing of Philippe Coutinho for a whopping £142 million but that is not going to stop them from spending more. The Calatan side are still on the hunt for a defender and have now agreed a deal for one.
Reports in SPORT claim that Barcelona have agreed a deal for Yerry Mina. The Palmeiras defender is set to cot them €11.5 million according to the report. Colombian defender is seen as a replacement for Javier Mascherano.
In case you didn’t know…
Barcelona are keen on signing a defender as Mascherano has reportedly agreed a deal to join Chinese Super League side, Hebei Fortune.
The Argentine is not a part of the plans under Ernesto Valverde and made it known that he wants to leave as soon as possible.
The heart of the matter
SPORT also claim that Barcelona had a deal with Palmeiras to sign Mina in the summer of 2018 for €9 million. But, the need for a centre-back this month forced them to fast forward the deal.
The Brazilian side's sporting director, Alexandre Mattos confirmed last week that Barcelona had made an offer to sign him this month. “It's true that Barcelona came for Mina with another offer but also that Palmeiras want Mina to stay here,” he was quoted by Goal.com.
The Sao Paulo based side gave Mina the full control over his future and the player has reportedly decided that he wants to head to Camp Nou this month.
SPORT claim that he will be in Barcelona today and be officially unveiled after a medical is done. The defender is expected to sign a 5.5-year contract with the Catalan side.
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Author’s Take
Yerry Mina is one of the best young defenders in Brazil right now. He is just 23 years old and has been playing well for Palmeiras. Barcelona are getting a good long-term replacement for Mascherano but will only be playing him regularly from next season.
