Return to the Bosphorus?
©IMAGO
After recovering from a muscle injury, Min-jae Kim was in the starting line-up in five of FC Bayern’s last seven Bundesliga games this year. The 29-year-old has a contract at Säbener Strasse until 2028 and his working paper is reportedly well-paid: with a rumored annual salary of 17 million euros, the South Korean is one of the top earners in Vincent Kompany’s star ensemble. While the 75-time national player was repeatedly mentioned in the media last week as a candidate for a change next summer, two Istanbul city rivals are now vying for his services.
This is not about the former club Fenerbahce, but about Galatasaray and Besiktas, reports the Munich newspaper “tz”. Accordingly, Gala’s management asked Kim’s former teammates Victor Osimhen (together in Naples) and Sacha Boey (moved from Munich to Turkey in the winter) about the central defender. Several scouts are said to have recommended Kim as the ideal defensive solution in the winter. In keeping with the rumor, Vice President Abdullah Kavukcu announced larger projects in the transfer market: “We are only at the beginning of our project. We are building a team full of top players, we want to become the best in the world.”
To what extent Kim himself sees his possible future at another club remains to be seen. According to reports, the defensive giant feels very comfortable in Munich and does not see the need for a move either in terms of sport or economics. In the summer of 2023, Bayern transferred a transfer fee of 50 million euros to Naples for the 1.90 meter tall right-footer. It is now considered unlikely that a similar amount will be collected in the event of a sale. Kim’s peak market value at the time of 60 million euros has gradually fallen since then; it is currently valued at 25 million euros. In addition to the Turkish clubs, Chelsea FC and AC Milan were also recently considered potential buyers.
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