Picking Everton’s finest centre-half can almost feels like trying to trying to choose the best Terminator film since the turn of the Century.
Yerry Mina, however, could perhaps be viewed as the Arnold Schwarzenegger of Gwladys Street; the one redeeming factor in Rafa Benitez’s Goodison Park Genysis, the best of a bad bunch.
Everton’s record with and without Mina makes for remarkable reading.
With him, The Toffees have lost just one of seven Premier League games, winning four. Without the former Barcelona man, Everton have lost seven out of nine, conceding almost two goals per game.
Mason Holgate has endured a campaign to forget so far, Michael Keane looks lost without his erstwhile defensive partner while Ben Godfrey, Everton fans’ Player of the Year last term, is highly unlikely to be adding to his personal silverware collection on current form.
Marca reported a few weeks ago that Everton were looking to cash in on Mina ahead of the January transfer window.
AC Milan and Fiorentina are linked.
According to Jeunes Footeaux, Mina also has admirers elsewhere in the Premier League too.
Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United are desperate to bring in a rugged centre-half during the January window and Mina has joined James Tarkowski, Ben Mee and Nathan Ake on their wishlist.
And with good reason. Relegation-threatened Newcastle have conceded more goals (34) than any other team in England’s top flight after all.
Will Everton let Yerry Mina join Newcastle United?
Now, there are pros and cons to selling Mina next month.
In the pro column, he is one of the club’s highest earners on £120,000-a-week and a potential £17 million windfall would give Benitez some much-needed funds as he looks to reinforce at full-back and in central midfield.
Furthermore, while Mina is Everton’s finest centre-back, he is also their most injury prone.
He limped off during last week’s 2-1 victory over Arsenal after suffering a reoccurrence of the thigh injury that kept him out of action of six games.
On the other hand, the evidence proves that an Everton side with Mina are far better than an Everton side without him.
If Mina is only fit enough to play in half of Everton’s games between now and May, well then they’d stand a far better chance of picking up points in those games than they would if he were absent.
Should Burnley win their game in hand, there would only be four points separating Everton from the relegation zone.
Will Benitez survive at Everton?
Rafa Benitez’s job might not survive another couple of performances like the one against Watford, the one against Liverpool or Sunday’s 3-1 thumping at Crystal Palace.
It is no coincidence that all three of those defeats came with Mina watching on from the sidelines.
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