Thomas Tuchel, the head coach of German soccer giants Bayern Munich, has expressed his fondness for Kim Min-jae, recalling the Korean players he has worked with in the past.
“I like Kim Min-jae, he’s calm and straightforward,” Tuchel said in an interview published on the Bundesliga website on Sunday (June 17).
Tuchel praised Kim’s passing ability, saying, “It’s a good thing. “It’s good, because these are the qualities you need in a ‘build-up player,'” Tuchel said.
“He is also very brave in defense. He’s fast, he’s good at assisted defense, and he’s always looking over his shoulder for help.”
“I’ve played with two players from Korea so far, and Kim Min-jae has the same attitude as them,” Tuchel said, “He’s very disciplined. He’s very friendly and humble, so I’m very impressed so far.”
Tuchel coached Koo Ja-Cheol (Jeju United) and Park Joo-Ho (retired) during his time at Mainz. He even brought Park back to the club in 2015 when he was in charge of Dortmund.
Tuchel said: “I was very happy that Kim Min-jae decided to join Munich. “I was really happy that he decided to join us, because it was an unexpected signing,” Tuchel recalls, “We had planned to play with Luca Hernandez, but after the season he wanted to leave.
“We needed to find a replacement for the experience and quality that he brought to the table, and we found it.”
Hernandez, a key defender for the French national team, left for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at the end of the 2022-2023 season.
For the time being, Tuchel is sticking with a back four, but he’s not ruling out a three.
“We have a lot of attacking players in the team and it’s not easy to make room for them,” Tuchel said. “Three at the back works well for us, and we have players who can play fullback, so I wouldn’t rule it out. But for now, the back four is the main thing.”
Kim Min-jae played as a three-back at Fenerbahçe (Turkey) and as a four-back at Napoli (Italy), showing his proficiency in both formations.
Munich will open the 2023-2024 German Bundesliga season at home against Werder Bremen at 3:30 a.m. on Sept. 19. Kim Min-jae is expected to make his Bundesliga debut in the match.
Previously, Munich lost its first official match of the new season. They lost 0-3 to RB Leipzig in the 2023 German Football League (DFL) Super Cup on March 13.
Kim Min-jae made his official match debut late in the game, 먹튀검증토토사이트 but he was unable to turn the tide.