"Samson of Asian Football" where Kim Min-jae stands
Kim Min-jae (28, Bayern Munich) was praised for losing money because his technical advantages were not properly delivered to fans because of his nickname as a "monster defender."
"Kim Min-jae is nicknamed Monster because of his strong physical conditions and strong tackle," Jordanian daily Alai said in a preview content for the 18th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup Qatar Championship. "However, unlike this nickname, he is a center back who handles the ball gracefully enough to make people feel comfortable."
Alai, a 54-year-old newspaper, is recognized as Jordan's most prestigious newspaper. Korea, ranked 23rd in the world, will play its second Group E match against 87th-ranked Jordan at the Asian Cup from 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 20.
The English Monster sounds more like a beast when translated into Arabic. Alai told a Jordanian reader that he has good ball control to call Kim Min-jae an instinctive defender like a wild and ferocious beast because he doesn't take a path.
Alai, who summed up Kim Min-jae as "one of the best center backs in the world right now. Mainstay of the Korean defense line," noted, "▲Korean K League ▲ Chinese Super League ▲ Turkiye Schiffer League ▲ Italy Serie A ▲ Germany Bundesliga."
Kim Min-jae offered Fenerbahce a transfer fee of 18.05 million euros, the highest ever for a defender, in Turkiye in 2022, and moved to Napoli. He won the title of Best Defender and Best 11 in his debut season in the Italian Serie A league.
Bayern Munich spent 50 million euros (72.2 billion won) to recruit Kim Min-jae in 2023. It is the second-highest amount of money invested to recruit a center back in the history of the club.
At the time of Kim Min-jae's turn, the UEFA league ranking is ▲ 3rd Germany ▲ 4th Italy ▲ 20th Turkiye, and the European club ranking is △ 2nd Bayern Munich △ 19th Napoli △ 107th Fenerbahce.
"He instantly became a key defender and contributed to Napoli's winning the Serie A title for the first time in 33 years. Even after his departure, he is still very popular from Italian soccer fans in the southern part of the country. Joining Bayern Munich deserves to be called a blockbuster contract," Alai said, expressing admiration for his rapid growth.
Kim Min-jae is currently being selected along with Bayern Munich with an average of 86.5 minutes in 22 games including a cup tournament. He has been selected as one of the best 11 players of the 2022-23 European Football Association (ESM) and the 2023 International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) Team of the Year, establishing himself as a world class center back in name and reality.
Alai called Korea the "Samson of Asian Football" where Kim Min-jae stands. Samson is a figure who appears in the Old Testament with superhuman strength and fighting skills beyond imagination.
The Old Testament is a Jewish and Christian scripture, but Samson is often referred to as an object of metaphor for religious teachings in Islamic culture in West Asia, including Jordan.