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Leicester City have been linked with Barcelona defender Yerry Mina, with reports claiming the Foxes are one of three clubs to have bid £26.5m for him.

West Ham and Everton have also lodged offers for the 23-year-old according to Spanish outlet Sport.

Now Manchester United are said to be strongly considering a move for the player, who has dropped a hint he might join them in the way people do these days - by following them on Instagram.

While the player has the kudos of playing for arguably the biggest club in the world, he will be best known to Foxes fans for his recent performances for Colombia at the World Cup.

Here, the Mercury looks to shed a little more light on the man who threatened to derail football's bid to come home.

(Image: Getty)

Road to Barcelona

The 6ft 4in centre half began his career with three clubs before getting his big break in Europe with Barca.

After starting out at Deportivo Pasto he was snapped up by Independiente Santa Fe, spending two seasons there before moving to Brazilian side Palmeiras in May 2106.

He signed a five-year deal in Sao Paolo, but only stayed there for a year, scoring six times in 28 games at the back as Palmeiras won the Brazilian title.

City were linked with Mina last summer before Barcelona snapped him on a five-year contract in January, for what looked a snip at 11.8m euro with a reported release fee of 100m euro.

Unhappy times at the Nou Camp

Mina played in just five La Liga games in the second half of last season - and he often failed to make the match day squad.

That left him training alone and feeling miserable as a result with his dream move proving to be a nightmare.

"When I saw that I wasn't even on the bench, that I wasn't even being considered, I started to train alone at home. It is tough to watch your team-mates and see the matches on TV, it was a difficult moment that I don't wish on any player," Mina said in Bogota during a news conference on Thursday.

"There were very difficult moments that were very sad for me because I was really not doing well. There were moments when I thought everything was going to turn out as I had imagined, but it wasn't like that.

"I felt moments everything came crashing down upon me, I felt that nothing was going right, I couldn't even pass the ball right, or train, I just felt like nothing went right."

World Cup salvation

Mina enjoyed a brilliant World Cup for his country, scoring three times, including against England in the second round when he scored in stoppage time to keep Colombia in the tournament.

We all know what happened next as England won on penalties, but Mina had done his reputation no harm with a towering performance.

What now for Mina?

Now he is looking to the future and although he has not ruled out staying at Barca, he says he would be happy to leave.

"I want to play for a team where there is less pressure and where I can have minutes," he said.

"I will always try to do my best for me, for my club and I hope that wherever I end up, whether it is at Barcelona or whether I have to leave, I will do it in the best way, but for the moment I am happy at Barcelona."

Barca sporting director Eric Abidal has offered him hope of a second chance at the club, or potentially scuppered a move, depending how you look at it.

“Yerry had a great World Cup, he will come here and we believe in him, that’s why he’s here. He can ask for a lot of things but the coach and he will decide that, speaking," he is quoted as saying in Sport.

“I can’t be the one who decides who plays, that’s up to the coach (Ernesto Valverde)."