Problems with the Achilles tendon
© Imago
This article was published in the first version on March 14, 2025 and was updated on March 17 with new information and the quotations of the South Korean national coach.
Min-Jae Kim will be missing from FC Bayern for an indefinite period, the confirmed coach Vincent Kompany last Friday at the press conference before the game at Union Berlin. South Korea’s national coach Myung-Bo Hong now regretted and criticized the record champions.
“Kim is hurt, we hope that he will not be too long, but it is not enough for the next few weeks. He had problems with the Achilles tendon, that was known, ”Kompany announced last week. Together with Dayot Upamecano, Kim forms a well-coordinated central defender duo this season, which is the basis for the Bundesliga’s best defense with 24 goals. Kim was used in 37 of possible 40 games this season and was still on the pitch during the week in the Champions League against Bayer Leverkusen.
It is now about “controlling the stress. We have to see that we don’t overload it. Hopefully it is not too worrying, ”Kompany had given a record of Kim. The South Korean national coach Hong, however, would have expected such a stress control on the part of the Bundesliga club to his protégé much earlier.
“Kim Min-Jae is a very important player for both our team and Munich,” said the coach at a press conference before the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Oman and Jordan and added: “However, it was disappointing that Munich did not prevent the player, so that we had to have Kim Min-Jae exposed to important games.”
Since last year there have been signs of an injury risk at Kim, the coach continued, “and we were fully aware of it. (…) In the current situation, it is not right for player protection to play with Kim Min-Jae. So we decided to be considerate and to give it some peace. ” Already on Saturday, the South Korean Association had communicated the waiver of Kim’s use in favor of rehabilitation measures in a press release.