Despite his first goal of the season and many good defenses, the arrow of criticism was directed at Kim Min-jae.
Bayern Munich drew 3-3 in the sixth round of the Bundesliga in the 2024-2025 season against Eintracht Frankfurt at Deutsche Bank Parc in Frankfurt, Germany on the 7th (Korea time).
The home team Frankfurt played in a 4-4-2 formation. Hugo Wikitike and Omar Marmusch formed two tops on the front line, while the midfield was formed by Asghar Knaut, Elise Skiri, Hugo Larsson and Pares Chaivi. Artur Teate, Robin Koch, Tuta, and Rasmus Christensen were present in the defense. The goal was guarded by Kaua Santos.
The away team Bayern faced off with a 4-2-3-1 formation. Harry Kane was the one-top, and Serge Gnabry, Thomas Muller and Michael Olise defended the second line. Joshua Kimmich and Aleksandar Pavlovic worked together for the third line. The four-back was made up of Alfonso Davis, Kim Min-jae, Dayo Upamecano and Rafael Guerreiro. The goalkeeper’s gloves were worn by Manuel Neuer.
Bayern led the game perfectly from the beginning of the game. Kim Min-jae immediately blocked the opponent’s long ball counterattack in the third minute of the first half. Olise’s shot aimed at the corner of the goal in the 14th minute, but Santos fired himself and saved it.
Kim Min-jae scored the first goal. Kim Min-jae, who received Müller’s pass from a corner kick in the 15th minute of the first half, immediately shook the net with a right-footed shot. Bayern led with Kim Min-jae’s goal.
However, Frankfurt also had no intention of backing down. The equalizer balanced the game. In the 22nd minute of the first half, Knauf’s pass slipped through the defense and was connected to Marmusch. Guerreiro followed to mark it, but Marmusch calmly entered the box and scored with a right footed shot.
Kim Min-jae showed good defense. In the 28th minute of the first half, he thoroughly blocked the ball that led to Marmusch in the opponent’s counterattack and immediately connected it to the midfield.
Bayern lost a golden opportunity. In the 30th minute of the first half, Müller had a one-on-one chance by receiving an penetrating pass from inside the box. However, Müller’s shot was directly hit by Santos. Gnabry’s mid-range shot from the right side in the 33rd minute was also blocked by Santos.
Frankfurt added one more goal with a counterattack. In the 35th minute of the first half, Marmusch launched a counterattack to beat Upamecano and delivered a pass to Ekitike. Kim Min-jae fired in front of the gate to block Ekitike’s shot, but the shot went straight into the goal.
Bayern re-balanced the game. In the 38th minute of the first half, the attack from a corner kick flowed to the center and Olise’s shot was blocked by the goalkeeper and bounced off. Upamecano pushed it back and scored the equalizer. The first half ended 2-2.
Bayern led the game in the second half as well. Kane finished the free kick that he got in front of the penalty box in the second half with the kicker, but the ball floated high and headed to the stands, not the goal.
Bayern has taken the lead again. Oliseh caught a ball that Kane let slip backward from inside the box in front of the penalty box in the eighth minute of the second half. Oliseh calmly measured the defender and stabbed him in the corner of the goal with his left-footed shot.
Bayern continued to aim for additional goals. In the 11th minute of the second half, Kimihi confirmed the advance of the opposing goalkeeper Santos and attempted a strong shot at the near goal. Santos fired and managed to clear the ball.
Frankfurt struggled to block Bayern’s offensive. Olise’s cross in the 18th minute of the second half flowed in the direction of Müller on the right. When Müller took the ball, Kimmich immediately tried to shoot. The ball missed the side of the net unfortunately.
Bayern had a bad injury. Kane collapsed. At the 27th minute of the second half, they took out Kane and deployed Matisse Tel. After replacing him, they continued to attack. At the 32nd minute of the second half, Coman attempted a mid-range shot at the left side of the arc of the penalty box at a moment that his opponent did not expect. However, Santos threw himself to clear the ball that was heading to the corner.
Frankfurt lost the opportunity to score a goal. Christensen’s ball went to Evimbe who penetrated the goalpost alone in the 39th minute of the second half. Even though Evimbe threw himself away, the ball flowed out.
Bayern had an additional problem. Upamecano collapsed in the second half of extra time and was replaced by Eric Dier.
Frankfurt scored a theatrical goal. When Kim Min-jae’s header flowed in the second half of extra time, Marmusch, who received the pass, scored a dramatic equalizer with a shot.
In the end, the match ended in a 3-3 draw.
Throughout the entire game, Kim scored one goal, recorded 92 percent of pass success rate, 100 percent of tackle success rate, one clearance, nine ball possession recoveries, and three ball competitions. Other than having difficulties due to the high defense line in the losing scene, there were few major mistakes in other scenes. Football statistics media Footmob also gave Kim a 7.6 rating. It was the highest among the defense players, followed by Olise (8.7 points) and Müller (8.6 points) among all the players.
However, German media did not spare harsh criticism against Kim. German club Avent Zeitung gave Kim five points, the lowest score in his team, and said, “He scored his first goal of the season. However, he was unstable defensively. The timing was too late when he lost the second point. He also missed the timing when he lost the third point. He regressed one step back.” Germany’s SPOX also pointed out, along with a four-point rating, that “Kim Min-jae was unlucky as the ball headed for the opponent. He saved nothing even when he lost the second point.” 토토사이트
However, as the German media criticized, it was not easy to regard both lost points as Kim Min-jae’s mistakes. At the time of the second loss, Upamecano allowed Marmusch to break through first, and the defensive line collapsed. Kim Min-jae tried to block Ekittike’s shot, but it was not a situation that could not be completely blocked. It is difficult to say that Kim Min-jae is also responsible for the third loss. Kim Min-jae cleared the ball through the header, and the ball flows back toward the Frankfurt player. However, after Kim Min-jae’s advance, Dyer’s slow speed did not properly cover the back space, and Marmusch’s former position was not covered
Some German media also acknowledged Kim’s performance. RAN of Germany said, “Kim celebrated his first goal of the season with gusto. There were some problems with the defense line, but he was strong in the air. His confidence has increased,” and the German team gave him three points. Germany’s TZ also said, “Kim did his best against Frankfurt, but sometimes the center was open, and we lost the match just before the equalizer in the second half, which led to a disappointing loss.”
Kim Min-jae, who ended the match against Frankfurt a little unfortunately, is now expected to join the Korean national team to play an A-match in October and seek a chance to make up for it again in the match against Stuttgart on the 20th.