“Kim Min-jae (27, Napoli) has really come a long way. Thankfully.”
“SSC Napoli legend Ruth Kroll, 74, insists that finding a replacement for Kim Min-jae will be a difficult task,” Sport Italia reported on Feb. 2.
Kim joined Napoli in the 2022-2023 season and won the Serie A title in his first season with the club. It was the first league title in 33 years, since the 1989-1990 season when Diego Maradona led the team.
This season, Kim made 35 appearances in the league, logging 3,054 minutes on the pitch. Kim has scored two goals and provided two assists in the league, adding 1.6 tackles, 1.2 interceptions, 3.5 clearances, and 0.7 shot blocks per game.
According to ratings site Fúscore.com, Kim has been consistent enough to earn an average rating of 7.07 in the league.
His steady performance throughout the season earned him the Serie A Secretariat Player of the Month award in September and the Italian Footballers’ Association Player of the Month award in October.
For his performances, Kim was named as a finalist for the 2022-2023 season’s Best Defender by the Serie A secretariat, alongside Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli, 30) and Theo Hernandez (AC Milan, 26).
Kim’s recent performances and fame have caught the attention of big European clubs. In particular, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain are interested in the player. 먹튀검증
Napoli signed Kim as a replacement for Kalidou Koulibaly, who left for Chelsea ahead of the 2022-2023 season, but now they need to find a replacement.
Kroll, who played for Napoli in this situation, said: “Kim has really improved a lot. Thankfully. He has improved remarkably under a master like Luciano Spalletti,” he said.
However, he also expressed concern: “The defenders who follow him to Napoli will not be able to adapt to Italian soccer as quickly as the Korean.”