"Header's winning goal"→"Why Bayern Munich recruited him!" 'Monster Defender' Kim Min-jae's highest rating exploded, laughing in front of LEE

Nov 27, 2024

Photo = AFP Yonhap News

'Monster Defender' Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) laughed in front of Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain).

Bayern Munich, led by head coach Vincent Kompany, won 1-0 in the European Champions League (UCL) phase home game against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, on the 27th (Korea time). Bayern Munich moved up to 11th place in the UCL League phase (nine points). On the other hand, PSG fell to 26th place (4 points), where it was not possible to advance to the tournament, putting it on alert.

The match attracted attention with 'Korean Derby'. This is because both teams had soccer stars representing South Korea. Bayern Munich had "Hong Myung-bo's defense key" Kim Min-jae and PSG had "attack captain" Lee Kang-in.

It was Kim Min-jae who laughed. Kim Min-jae, who started the day, exploded his winning goal and UCL debut goal in the 38th minute of the first half. Kim Min-jae scored with a surprise header goal in the 38th minute of the first half when the game was 0-0. When the opposing goalkeeper failed to punch a corner kick close to the goal line from the left, Kim Min-jae shook the net with his head at the gate.

Kim Min-jae, who entered Europe in the Fenerbahce (Turkiye) uniform in 2021, never posted an attack point in the club competition. This season, he had one goal in the league alone. He scored his first goal of the season in the sixth round of the German Bundesliga against Frankfurt on the 6th of last month. Kim Min-jae scored his second goal of the season.

He also showed his best defense performance. In the fifth minute of the second half, he blocked the path of the opponent's attack by cutting off a pass to Nunu Mendes, the opponent's side defender who ran to the front line with his back foot. He contributed to Bayern Munich's scoreless victory with his outstanding position selection.

Photo = AFP Yonhap News

PSG, on the other hand, struggled with red cards. In the 11th minute of the second half, PSG striker Usman Dembele was sent off due to accumulated warnings. Dembele received a yellow card once for protesting excessively in the first half. He received a second yellow card for a deep tackle on his opponent Alfonso Davis, who was about to go on the counterattack. PSG, on the verge of defeat, put Lee Kang-in instead of Warren Zaire Emery in the 20th minute of the second half as its first replacement card. Lee Kang-in made Munich nervous with an occasional sharp left-footed kick, but failed to change the flow of defense.

It is the first time in 13 years that a Korean player has played on the UCL stage since Park Ji-sung of Manchester United (England) and Park Joo-ho of FC Basel (Switzerland) in the 2011-2012 season.

Meanwhile, after the game, there was a lot of praise for Kim Min-jae. He was named the man of the match. Teammates Manuel Neuer and Harry Kane celebrated Kim Min-jae's performance on SNS (social network service).

Bavarian Football, which mainly reports on Bayern Munich, once again picked Kim Min-jae as 'Kaiser' (emperor). The media reports 'Perfectly timed tackles, spectacular positioning, clean and solid passes. He woke up like a phoenix after suffering a disaster against FC Barcelona. Bayern Munich is showing the world why it paid a large amount of money and recruited him. Don't make a mistake' heaped praise.

Give Me Sports also gave Kim Min-jae the highest eight points and gave Bayern Munich the lead with a header goal. Looked like the best defender. He kept his team's lead by blocking in succession.

epi17@sportschosun.com