Davinson Sánchez Mina is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a centre back for English club Tottenham Hotspur and for the Colombian national team. When he signed in for Tottenham in 2017 Sánchez was a club record signing, costing them around £42 million.
As a youth, Sánchez played in the youth academy of América de Cali, but after his parents moved, he was transferred to Atlético Nacional, where he was educated under the wings of Juan Carlos Osorio. The defender made his debut for the senior team on 27 October2013, in a 0–1 loss to Boyacá Chicó. Osorio put the player in the starting lineup and he completed the entire match. On 2 March 2016, Sánchez scored his first goal for Nacional in a 3–0 victory over Sporting Cristal from Peru in the Copa Libertadores. Due to his performances for Nacional, foreign clubs including Barcelona, Flamengo, and Ajax showed an interest in signing the player. Barcelona made a formal offer to sign the player, but Sánchez declined the offer because he didn't want to start in FC Barcelona B, the reserve team. He won the Copa Libertadores 2016 against Ecuadorian Independiente del Valle.
Ajax
In June 2016, Sánchez signed a five-year contract with Dutch side Ajax, until 2021. The club paid a transfer fee of €5 million to Atlético Nacional. A few days earlier, Ajax had signed Sánchez's compatriot Mateo Cassierra, thus making him the second Colombian in the squad. Sánchez joined his new team, after Nacional had finished its participation in the Copa Libertadores. Sánchez debuted with Ajax on 13 August in a 2–2 tie with Roda JC Kerkrade, he started and played the 90 minutes. His first goal with the club was on 24 September against PEC Zwolle. On 8 May 2017, he was named as best player of the season for Ajax.
Tottenham Hotspur
On 18 August 2017, Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur announced that they had agreed a move for Sánchez signing a six-year contract subject to a work permit, for a reported transfer fee of up to £42 million. He made his debut on 27 August as a substitute for Mousa Dembélé in the 92nd minute in a 1–1 draw with Burnley. On 15 May 2018, Sánchez signed a new contract with Tottenham, keeping him at the club until 2024. On 10 February 2019, Sánchez scored his first goal for Tottenham in the Premier League game against Leicester City. On 1 June 2019, Sánchez was an unused substitute for Tottenham in the 2019 Champions League Final against Liverpool.
International career
called up Sánchez for a training squad with the senior Colombia squad in February 2016. In May 2018, he was named in Colombia's preliminary 35-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. In June 2018, he was named in Colombia's final 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He played in all three group matches and their round of 16 match. In June 2019, he started in three of the four games in the 2019 Copa América, helped the team keep a clean sheet and beat Argentina for the first time in 12 years. The team however lost in the quarter-final against Chile after a penalty shoot-out.
