It might only be a friendly against Tottenham Hotspur, but it will mean a little more to Bayern Munich center-back Kim Min-jae, who will be playing in his native South Korea.
“I’m very excited to bring my teammates to my home country. It’s the first time that I do a pre-season back home. It’s very special and I’m really looking forward to the match tomorrow. I’m trying to share the Korean culture with my teammates and show them some nice restaurants in Seoul. Just sharing some stories with them and telling them about Korea in general,” Min-jae said (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “I don’t really like attention. But of course, there’s a focus on me here. I’m not the only player the fans are interested in – not here either. We have a great squad with players like Manuel Neuer, Thomas Müller and Jamal Musiala. I hope they get more attention than I do.”
Of course, with this friendly, Min-jae will have a chance to face off with his South Korea teammate and Spurs star Son Heung-min.
“I’ve only faced Sonny in training so far. He’s a top player, but Tottenham also have many other great players that we have to look out for. Of course I hope we’ll leave the pitch as winners tomorrow and I’m looking forward to my first game against Sonny,” Min-jae stated.
Part of the festivities included Min-jae inviting the team to a dinner. The center-back said that Joshua Kimmich seemed to enjoy the cuisine the most.
“I’m grateful and thankful to the team. Everyone really enjoyed dinner yesterday. I think Kimmich particularly enjoyed it, he ordered different dishes and had a big dinner. We had a really good time,” Min-jae said.
Min-jae also said that having a head coach, who played his position of center-back at a high level was gong to be an asset to the defenders on the squad.
“He was a great defender and played at the highest level. I’m trying to learn as much as I can from him. He likes defenders who play aggressively, so I think that could be a good fit. But he hasn’t been here for long yet. I’m looking forward to working together with him,” said Min-jae.
Finally, there were rumors that Min-jae was contemplating an exit from the club, but he insisted that was not the case: “I never thought about that. I want to work hard, give everything for Bayern and help the club.”
Are you ready for a heat check on how things are going at Bayern Munich? We are. On the latest edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show (Season 4, Episode 2), we tackle how we’re feeling about the squad at the moment, the sticky situation surrounding the future of Joshua Kimmich, thoughts on the transfers situations of Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui, and a whole lot more. Check it out on Patreon, Spotify, or below: