Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde reportedly held talks with defender Yerry Mina over the weekend after he was snubbed for the Sevilla game.
The 23-year-old has found it difficult to adapt to Spanish football since his arrival from Palmeiras in January, as he’s made just two appearances in all competitions, totalling 97 minutes of football.
It could be argued that he needs to play regularly to adjust to the pace and style in Europe, but with the first-choice pairing of Samuel Umtiti and Gerard Pique keeping things tight at the back, it hasn’t been easy for the Colombian to settle at the Nou Camp.
To make matters worse, he has even been left out of squads by Ernesto Valverde in recent weeks which can’t have helped the process or his confidence, but as reported by Sport, after the latest snub for Sevilla, the pair talked over the weekend and smoothed the situation over.
It’s claimed that Mina was left reassured as Valverde insisted that he’s an important part of his plans but needs more time to improve.
That seems like a fair analysis, and if the defender has taken it on board and is showing the right attitude and approach, then it should lead to him working hard to prove himself to the Barcelona boss.
Time will tell if he does so, but perhaps it is a little concerning that he hasn’t been able to get more opportunities despite the fact that the Catalan giants have been competing on three fronts in recent months and he hasn’t been able to make more of an impression to force Valverde to rotate.