Yerry Mina ready to join Barcelona in January if Ernesto Valverde gives approval

Barcelona are said to be ready to complete the signing of Yerry Mina from Palmeiras in the January transfer window if Ernesto Valverde feels he needs to strengthen his back-line further ahead of the second part of the campaign.

Mundo Deportivo and AS claim that everything is agreed but the Spanish manager will have the final say over the signing of the Colombia international centre-back.

The 23-year-old towering defender has been linked with a move to Barcelona since it emerged that the Catalans had secured first refusal to sign him in a deal worth around €9m (£8m, $10.5m)

In June, Mina's agent all but confirmed that the Colombian international will join Barcelona in 2018 – but there have been doubts over whether the Catalans will complete the transfer in January or in the summer.

"Yes, his arrival is scheduled for 2018," Felipe Russo said. "For the moment he'll stay in Brazil, then he will go to La Liga. Everything is practically closed and his dream has always been to be a Barcelona player."

"Why would this break down, when it's a move that ensures the player's best interests?" Russo asked. "He'll stay with Palmeiras for another season as he wants to be in top shape going into the 2018 World Cup. But there are zero possibilities that things will change."

It has been said Barcelona planned to wait until the summer for Mina to complete a pre-season with the rest of his teammates in order to help him adapt to Europe.

However, in recent times there have been reports saying Barcelona could bring the move forward to January after the Catalans failed to bolster their defence during the summer with the arrival of Íñigo Martínez from Real Sociedad.

It was said then that Valverde personally requested the signing of Martinez to provide competition for Gerard Pique, Samuel Umtiti and Javier Mascherano in the heart of the defence.

Barcelona instead decided to bring Thomas Vermalen back from his loan spell at AS Roma to serve as Valverde's fourth choice centre-back. However, the boss seemingly has little faith in the Belgium international, failing to give him a single minute of playing time during the opening part of the season.

Vermaelen suggested earlier this week that he could consider leaving the club in the January transfer window – leaving a gap in the heart of the back-line that could be filled by Mina.

AS and Mundo Deportivo are thus reporting that Barcelona have everything ready to complete the signing of Mina, but Valverde will have final say on the deal.

The Catalan publication says that the La Liga giants will need to pay €9m if they bring forward the move to January – while signing him in the summer will require an extra €1m.

Mina, meanwhile, is expected to return to action for Palmeiras in the coming days after having been out action since breaking his foot during a Copa Libertadores encounter between his side and Barcelona de Guayaquil on 10 August.