The praise relay continues for the perfect revival of Monster Kim Min-jae Bayern Munich.
Bayern Munich had a 1-1 draw with Leverkusen in the fifth round of the German Bundesliga in the 2024-2025 season at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, on September 29. Bayern overwhelmed Leverkusen last season, but had a disappointing draw. Bayern, which conceded the first goal to Robert Andrich in the 31st minute of the first half, brought the game to square one with Aleksandr Pavlovic’s equalizer in the 39th minute of the first half. Bayern had five undefeated matches and maintained its lead with 13 points 4 wins and 1 draw.
Dayo Upamecano and center back Kim Min-jae showed aggressive defense again on the day. Starting with blocking the opponent’s pass with a header at the half-line, Kim cut off the opponent’s through pass with a beautiful sliding tackle at the eighth minute of the second half. At the 26th minute of the second half, he read the path of the opponent’s counterattack pass in advance, and succeeded in defense. Bayern, led the opponents all the time with Kim Min-jae’s aggressive defense, was able to push forward. On the day, Bayern was ahead 18:3 in the number of shots fired. He also made one shot attempt at offense, displaying sharpness.
During the full-time game, Kim recorded 92 percent pass success rate, one shot, two interceptions, seven ball possession recoveries, 75 percent ball competition, 50 percent ball competition, and seven overall competitions. European soccer statistics website Footmob gave Kim a good rating of 7.5. Sofascore earned 7.1 percent and Huscore earned 6.84 percent.
The German media praised Kim’s performance. Sport 1 gave Kim 1.5 points, the highest rating in his team, and said, Kim didn’t have much to do in the first half. He showed concentration and didn’t make any big mistakes. When he attempted a long ball, he preferred to go forward like a torpedo and intercepted the opponent’s pass at the half-line. That was exactly how Coach Bang Sang Kompany wanted to do it. Given two points, the team’s No. 1 ranking, Avent Zeitung also said, He showed good timing when moving defense. Overall, his performance was stable. He was Bayern’s best player on the day, even though he had a slight deflection from his Andrich shot.
Other media showed similar responses. Along with two ratings, Spox said there were stable and several standout defense scenes, and TZ also gave two ratings, saying they were confident that they pushed Leverkusen roughly from their position. They blocked Leverkusen from attacking and gave off the defense that they needed from the back. Germany’s Sky Sports also gave a rating of two. Most praised Kim’s performance on the day, giving him the best rating in the team or among the defense.
In particular, Kicker and Legend Lothar Matheus, who were critical of Kim Min-jae, gave a thumbs-up to Kim Min-jae. Kicker announced on the 30th the German Bundesliga’s fifth round team for the 2024-2025 season. On the list, Tuta, Omar Marmusch, Rasmus Christensen Frank Frankfurt, Seru Girasi Dortmund, Benjamin Seschko, Gulaci Peder Leifrich, Elias Saad Zant Pauli, Jonas Feurenbach Heidenheim, and Jens Starke Verder Bremen were on the list, and Kim Min-jae was also included. He was the only Bayern player. Kicker praised Kim Min-jae, saying, He played a firm and meticulous defense, and was strong in tackles and headers. Through his performance, he erased questions about his class.
Matheus also praised Bayern through Sport 1, referring to Kim Min-jae. Now Bayern is a stronger team than when Pep Guardiola led it for three years from 2013 to 2016, Matheus said. I try to play aggressive soccer, not sideways or backward. Coach Kompany revived the center back line between Kim Min-jae and Dayo Upamecano, who were weak under Matheus Tuchel, he said. It’s fun to watch the Bayern game again. Matheus said in the past, It’s impossible to show Kim Min-jae’s play in Naples now at Bayern, and Kim Min-jae is a source of anxiety for Bayern. He is not doing as well as expected.
The players also praised him. Joshua Kimmich, who is playing as a defensive midfielder, praised the defense led by Kim Min-jae through Sport 1. Kimmich said, They have shown great performance over the past few weeks. They have to defend a large area. They need tremendous skill to defend a large area in the back from a position of 50 to 60 meters from the goal. They had been criticized after the match against Wolfsburg, but the coach openly defended them. Now they are paying it back. Both players have shown great form.
However, Bild gave him three points on the day. It was the lowest rating among the defense. Bild seems to be turning a blind eye to Kim Min-jae, who is showing the best performance. Racism is even suspected. He even ran an article that said Kim Min-jae mocked Tuchel. Even though he has never publicly expressed his regret or criticism about Tuchel, he ran an article with an absurd title.
Kim Min-jae is finally living up to his expectations this season. He was a bit disappointed in the first match, but he fully recovered under the trust of Coach Bang Sang Kompany. In particular, his recent performance reminds me of that of the monstrous performance he showed when he was playing for Napoli. At the last match against Werder Bremen, TZ gave him one point, which is the highest rating, and said, Confident Kim Min-jae is one of the best center backs in Europe. He has regained his confidence every time he tackles. He always advanced carefully and blocked potential counterattacks in advance. He was also selected as the official best 11 in the fourth round of the Bundesliga Secretariat.
This is a completely different look from last season, when he had difficulties under Thomas Tuchel. Bayern general manager Max Evel said, The defense is working properly. In particular, Kim Min-jae and Upamecano showed outstanding performances. This is Bayern’s performance. Unlike Tuchel, who had difficulties in adaptation and tactics during his somewhat eccentric style, Kim Min-jae is showing confident and bold play under Kompany. Kim Min-jae told the secret about his changed appearance. After the game, Kim met with Avent Zeitung’s Kylian Kreit at the Mix Zone and said, Kompany explains in much more detail what he wants from the players.
TZ delivered an article called How Kompany put Bayern’s defense on track, and it was possible to get hints about Kompany’s detailed tactics. For now, Kompany prefers bold pressure with all players, including Harry Kane. 메이저사이트 This reduced the gap between the defense lines and reduced the coverage of Kim Min-jae. Kim Min-jae has a 66.7% success rate of tackles, the No. 1 player in the team this season. By raising his role in the build-up play, he has lessened the burden on the defense, delicately instructing when the center backs will advance and retreat, and how to cover it, allowing Kim Min-jae to play freely. TZ explained, This tactical clarity minimizes Bayern’s defensive problems and helps them continue their victory.
Bayern CEO Jan Christian Dresen said, Kim Min-jae and Upamecano played so well. I’m happy that they played together. Dresen sent Matthias the Ligt to Manchester United and kept Kim Min-jae and Upamecano. At that time, the choice was criticized a lot, but now it is receiving a completely different evaluation. Dresen said, It is true that I was criticized last season. There were times when he showed poor performance. However, it is important that Kim Min-jae returned to his best form after the Korean tour after the vacation, adding, Kim Min-jae completely trusted the coach. Kompany is also producing the best results with the combination of Kim Min-jae and Upamecano, rather than the public opinion of the fans. I can see that he is getting better and better at breathing. He is literally beautiful.