‘We have to’ - how Everton plan to keep Yerry Mina fit ahead of injury return

Frank Lampard has outlined Everton’s plan as they bid to keep Yerry Mina fit.

The centre-back is now back in full training and is close to being involved in today’s clash against Leicester City at Goodison Park.

Mina hasn’t played since suffering ankle ligament damage on the opening-day defeat to Chelsea in August before then sustaining a calf issue.

The Colombia international’s injury issues since joining the Toffees from Barcelona in 2018 have been rife. Last season, he managed just 13 Premier League outings and has been withdrawn in three separate games during Lampard’s 10-month reign as manager.

But the Everton boss revealed he will look to manage Mina’s training to ensure the defender does not have another lengthy period on the sidelines.

Lampard said: "Some individuals have some different factors involved. Yerry's history since I've been here, I've had to deal with that given how many times he's had to come off when he's played and missed periods of time.

“We try to work with him, we try to have a good relationship with the player and they also have to invest in it. Sometimes, you have to control their rehab and their training and sometimes players get frustrated with that because they want to crack straight on out on the pitch and play.

“We have to make sure we know what we're doing and sometimes hold [them] back to maintain fitness. Those are challenging moments at times because everyone wants to get back playing but we have to try to do the best we can with that one.”