Kim Min-jae stands tall at the center of the build-up.
Bayern Munich recorded a 3-0 victory over Freiburg in the 7th round of the German Bundesliga in the 2023-24 season held at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany at 12:30 am (Korean time) on the 9th. As a result, Munich recorded 5 wins, 2 draws (17 points), and extended its undefeated streak to 7 games.
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Munich lost its pride last season. They aimed to become European champions by surpassing Germany, but there was only one league trophy. In the Pokal, they collapsed in the quarterfinals by losing to Freiburg, and also bowed to Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League (UCL). However, this does not mean that they showed an overwhelming performance in the league. They had consistent ambiguous performance throughout the entire season and almost lost the championship to Dortmund. Fortunately, Dortmund drew at the end of the league, and Munich was able to achieve a dramatic win.
Accordingly, Munich sought change. Midway through last season, coach Julian Nagelsmann was fired and full authority was handed over to coach Thomas Tuchel. During the summer transfer market, Kim Min-jae, who was selected as the best defender in Italy’s Serie A, was brought in, and Tottenham Hotspur’s ‘ace’ Harry Kane was sought to fill the void left by Robert Lewandowski.
So far, we are on track throughout the entire competition. In the opening game of the league, they met Werder Bremen and scored a whopping 4 points, and continued their winning streak by defeating Augsburg and Mönchengladbach. This trend stopped in the 4th round. Last season, they faced Leverkusen, who had been on the rise since coach Xabi Alonso took over, and ended up with a 2-2 draw after a fierce battle. It was disappointing that we didn’t win at home, but we were able to find positive aspects as well.
The trend that was interrupted in Leverkusen continued again in the match against Bochum. Munich defeated Bochum by scoring a whopping 7 points. Although they drew 2-2 against Leipzig, which was played immediately after, considering that they lost 0-3 in the Super Cup, the 2-2 away draw was an encouraging result.
UCL is also continuing its upward trend. In the first match of the group stage against Manchester United, Munich scored a whopping 4 goals and won 3 points. It was also a positive phenomenon that several strikers, including Kane, Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry, and Mathis Tell, scored goals. However, at the end of the game, two goals were conceded due to a lack of concentration, which needed improvement.
The freshmen are doing their part. First, Kane ranks second in scoring, scoring 8 goals in 6 league games. In the league, he has scored in all games except for the match against Mönchengladbach, and he also scored a goal in the UCL. In the last game against Bochum, he achieved his first hat trick since entering the Bundesliga and also accumulated a whopping 5 attack points, including 2 assists.
Kim Min-jae is also becoming the center of Munich’s defense. Competition with Dayot Upamecano and Matthais de Ligt was expected, but he has become a regular starting player after the opening season. Minjae Kim’s seat can be said to be almost fixed, and Upamecano and De Ligt are competing for the remaining spot. So far, Upamecano has been acting as Kim Min-jae’s partner, and with De Ligt injured, this system is expected to continue.
Of course, he cannot show perfect performance in every game. In the last game against Leipzig, Kim Min-jae played full-time, but received a decent evaluation. Based on the soccer statistics media ‘Sofa Score’, he recorded 124 touches on the ball and had a pass success rate of 92%. He showed decent defensive stats, including 2 clears, 2 interceptions, and 2 tackles, and won 2 ground duels and 1 air superiority duel. The rating was 6.9, which was lower than ‘partner’ Upamecano (7.3), but it was in the middle of the team as a whole.
Several officials expressed their disappointment at this. Coach Tuchel pointed out Kim Min-jae’s movements and said, “It took time to execute the plan and find space. There were a lot of mistakes. There were also sloppy defensive aspects. There was no reason for Kim Min-jae to go one-on-one. Upamecano also did not guard Kim Min-jae. “He gave us space by running away. It was the opposite of what we wanted.”
Germany’s ‘legend’ Lothar Matheus also spoke bitterly. He said, “Kim Min-jae has not yet achieved what we expected. He may remain as an unstable factor in Munich’s defense. He needs to get used to the Bundesliga. I am not negative about recruiting Kim Min-jae, but he has not yet lived up to expectations.” He said.
Minjae Kim received negative evaluations. But he proved his worth in just one game. In the second match of the UCL group stage against Copenhagen, Munich won 2-1. Although they played an overwhelming game, recording 59.2% possession in 90 minutes and recording 15 shots, twice more than Copenhagen, the process of winning three points was difficult.
Kim Min-jae did his best. Based on the soccer statistics media ‘Sofa Score’, it ranked first overall in the game with a rating of 7.7. He touched the ball a whopping 115 times and had a pass success rate of 92%. He was at the top in defensive indicators, including 5 clears, 1 block, 3 interceptions, 1 tackle, and 1 decisive interception, and showed physical superiority, including 1 successful ground duel and 5 successful air superiority duels.
It was a performance that properly responded to Mateus’ negative remarks. In this game, Kim Min-jae led the team’s defense as a ‘sure factor’ rather than an ‘anxious factor’ in Munich. There were several situations that could have been a crisis without Kim Min-jae, and he ran the game smoothly as the center of the rear build-up.
Through this match, Munich broke a new record. It is an undefeated streak of 36 games in the UCL group stage. There is no team that can follow Munich in the group stage.
The last game before the international break. Munich wants to end the schedule on a good note with a win. The opponent is Freiburg. It is not an easy opponent. Currently, they are in 8th place with 3 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses (10 points) in 6 league games. I can’t say the atmosphere is good recently. They have recorded 2 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses in 5 official matches, and suffered a 1-2 loss in the previous UEFA Europa League (UEL) match against West Ham United.
Munich has an overwhelming advantage in head-to-head matches. In the last 10 official games, Munich has suffered only 1 loss, and according to soccer statistics media ‘Transfermarkt’, they have recorded 34 wins in 48 games in total.
When limited to leagues, the differences can be seen more clearly. Munich has not lost in 14 games since losing in the 33rd round of the 2014-15 league season. Last season, they scored a whopping 6 points in total away from home and did not give up a single goal.
Munich used a 4-2-3-1 formation. Kane, Sane, Müller, Coman, Kimmich, Goretzka, Davis, Minjae Kim, Upamecano, and Mazrawi started as starters, with Ulreich guarding the goal. Against this, Freiburg used the 4-4-2 formation. Salai, Wheeler, Griffo, Roll, Egestein, Doan, Kubler, Gulde, Linhardt and Sildilia filled the starting XI, with Atubolu donning the goalkeeper’s gloves.
Munich opened fire. In the 3rd minute of the first half, Goretzka received Kimmich’s cross and attempted a header shot inside the box, but the ball deviated to the left of the goal. Freiburg, having overcome the crisis, also launched a counterattack. In the 6th minute of the first half, Wheeler, who received a pass from Salai, attempted a right-footed shot from the right side of the box, but the ball headed to the right side of the goal.메이저사이트
Munich launched an onslaught. Davis, who caught the ball in the box in the 9th minute of the first half, tried to shoot with his left foot, but the ball missed the goal. Munich, who raised the mood, took the lead first. In the 12th minute of the first half, Coman, who received a pass from Müller, attempted a right-footed shot from a difficult angle inside the box, hitting Freiburg’s net.
Munich, which took the lead, aimed for an additional goal. In the 19th minute of the first half, Kane received a pass from Sane and attempted a bold mid-range shot from outside the box, but the ball missed the left side of the goal. Kane continued to aim for the score. In the 22nd minute of the first half, he received Mazraoui’s pass and took a right-footed shot inside the box, but it did not result in an effective shot.
Munich, who continued to pound, widened the score gap. In the 25th minute of the first half, Sane received a pass from Kane and attempted a left-footed shot inside the box, scoring his second goal. Although the victory was secured, Munich’s attack did not stop. In the 31st minute of the first half, Sane received Coman’s cross and attempted a left-footed shot inside the box, but it was blocked by the opposing defense.
Munich led the attack until the last minute. In the 35th minute of the first half, Kimmich received a pass from Sane and attempted a bold mid-range shot from outside the box, but it missed the right side of the goal. Munich swallowed its regret. Sane hit Freiburg’s net in the 43rd minute of the first half, but the referee declared offside after video review (VAR) and the score was cancelled. There were no additional goals after that, and the first half ended with Munich taking a 2-0 lead.
It was a one-sided game. Since they had a large lead in objective power and were playing at home, Munich harassed Freiburg for the entire 45 minutes. Based on soccer statistics media ‘WhoScored’, they recorded a 67.1% possession rate and attempted a whopping 9 shots. The pass success rate also reached 91%.
Freiburg made a difference in the second half. At the start, Roll was removed and Philip was added. However, the attack was still led by Munich. In the 12th minute of the second half, after receiving Kane’s header pass, Müller attempted a right-footed shot inside the box, but missed the goal. In the ensuing situation, Coman even took a shot, but it was blocked by the opposing defense.
Munich continued to attack. In the 18th minute of the second half, Davis received a pass from Kim Min-jae and attempted a bold mid-range shot from outside the box, but was blocked by the defense. Kane’s shot in the ensuing situation was also blocked by the opponent’s hand-to-hand defense.
Munich swallowed its regret. In the 23rd minute of the second half, Coman received Kimmich’s pass and attempted a left-footed shot inside the box, but the ball went over the goal. Freiburg made additional substitutions. In the 23rd minute of the second half, Doan and Wheeler were removed and Weishaupt and Adamu were brought in. But the atmosphere did not change. Rather, it gave Munich a chance to score. In the 26th minute of the second half, Coman received Sane’s pass and attempted a right-footed shot inside the box, but it was blocked by the goalkeeper.
Munich, which had won, also gave its starting players a rest. In the 27th minute of the second half, Müller and Kane were removed and Musiala and Tell were brought in. Munich did not stop attacking until the end of the second half. In the 38th minute of the second half, Goretzka received a pass from Sane and attempted a mid-range shot from outside the box, but the goalkeeper blocked it.
Eventually, Munich finished the game. In the 40th minute of the second half, Coman, who received Reimer’s pass, attempted a left-footed shot inside the box and was sucked into Freiburg’s goal. In the 45th minute of the second half, Adamu attempted a shot to make up for the goal, but it missed the goal, and the game ended with Munich winning 3-0.
It was an overwhelming power difference. Munich put pressure on Freiburg with even more fierce attacks than in the first half. Based on WhoScored, the possession rate was a whopping 70% and shots were attempted 21 times. Freiburg focused only on defense and attempted only two shots in 90 minutes.
Kim Min-jae performed well this time too. Based on ‘Who Scored’, he received a whopping rating of 7.9, and soccer statistics media ‘Sofa Score’ also gave Kim Min-jae a rating of 7.6. This was the highest rating among the defense teams.
The detailed indicators were also great. While playing full-time, he recorded 3 interceptions and 2 tackles, and showed his physical superiority, including 100% air superiority wins and 2 ground duel wins. He also served as the center of the build-up. Kim Min-jae, who touched the ball a whopping 180 times, posted a 92% pass success rate and recorded one key pass.
Local reviews were also good. British media ’90mn’ gave Kim Min-jae a rating of 7 and left a positive review, saying, “It wasn’t always accurate, but his adventurous spirit to lead the rear build-up was great.”
Munich is now on international break. After a two-week break, they will play a league match against Mainz and the third match of the UCL group stage against Galatasaray. Minjae Kim will join the Korean national team for friendly matches against Tunisia and Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Kane was silent in this game as well. He boasted of his best goal scoring ability, scoring 6 goals in September alone.
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