Kim Min-jae has grown into a center back who is wary of even the best striker in the Bundesliga. Victor Boniface, who led Bayer Leverkusen’s unbeaten league win last season, mentioned Kim Min-jae as the most demanding defender.
Germany’s FCB Inside, which reported the news of Munich, said on the 11th (Korea time), “The strongest defender? Boniface made the Bayern Munich duo shine even more. Boniface, who has seven goals in nine games this season, has revealed who are the three toughest defenders he has ever faced.”
According to the media, Boniface, a Nigerian, said in an interview with his own media outlet Soccernet, “The strongest defenders we’ve faced so far were Tim Toyol Yonathanta, Bayern Munich duo Dayo Upamecano and Kim Min-jae.”
FCB Inside speculated that Boniface chose Kim Min-jae and Upamecano because of the recent draw. In the match, which was tied at 1-1, Boniface was tied to Upamecano and Kim Min-jae and failed to hit a single shot.
Boniface played as a leading European striker last season by scoring 27 goals and 11 assists in 43 matches for Leverkusen. He is a big striker who led Leverkusen to an unbeaten win in the league, the runner-up at the UEFA Europa League, and the DFB-Pokal victory. However, his recent memory of being tied to Kim Min-jae and Upamecano seems to have left a strong impression on Boniface.
“Bonnie Face picked Upamecano, Ta and Kim Min-jae as the strongest defenders he faced in his career,” Soccernet said. “We faced defenders like Arsenal’s William Saliba, Gabriel Magalyangis, AC Milan’s Fikayo Tomori and Borussia Dortmund’s Mats Hummels, but no one left an impression on him,” he said. “On the contrary, Upamecano, Kim Min-jae and teammate Ta were the most difficult players.”
Kim Min-jae is taking over the German stage little by little, just like when he conquered Italy in Naples.
Kim Min-jae, who joined Munich last season, had a hard time as he was the main player in the beginning but was eliminated as a bench member in the second half of the season after losing to Eric Dier. During the summer transfer market, he was rumored to return to Italy and move to an overseas league. 안전놀이터
The reversal occurred after the new head coach Bang Sang Kompany was appointed. He regained his position by being trusted by Kompany. In the opening game, he was criticized for making a decisive mistake, but later gradually recovered his performance and contributed decisively to Munich’s winning streak.
Unfortunately, his winning streak was cut off against Leverkusen, but he tied his Bonnie face tightly to win praise from the German media. Some critics say that his unique and aggressive defense for prediction has returned to the level of his heyday in Naples.
He was considered the hardest defender for Boniface, who led Leverkusen to an unbeaten victory last season, proving that he has become a formidable center back in the Bundesliga.
Fans are also smiling at Kim’s performance. According to Bayern & German, fans applauded Kim for his scoreless victory in Group B of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup against Jordan, with comments such as “Kim Min-jae effect,” “Kim Min-jae is always a clean sheet,” “Our warrior,” “Firm defender,” “It was fantastic,” and “Our team’s best defender.”
