Matthias Dürich, who has recently been playing alongside Eric Dier as the first-choice center back, says he doesn’t understand the transfer speculation surrounding Kim Min-Jae.
“Dayo Upamecano and Kim Min-Jae are going through the same situation as I was,” he told Germany’s Sport1 on Sunday (Aug. 27), “and they’re not saying anything, but it’s everywhere that some clubs want them. It’s a real problem. It doesn’t match the reality at all,” he said.
Dürich also recently spoke out about the transfer speculation. “In Munich, if I don’t play a little bit, it’s immediately said that I’m not happy or that I want to leave,” he said at the time. “Of course I want to play, but I have no reason to complain. I’m still enjoying my time in Munich,” he said.
On his return to Munich after being called up to the Netherlands squad for the A-League matches against Scotland and Germany, Diricht was once again confused when asked about his center-back teammates‘ transfer speculation.
“The fans give me a lot of love. For me, change is not a problem,” he said, adding: “As for me leaving at the end of the season? I can say that is absolutely not happening. I can completely rule it out. I’m a Bayern Munich player, I’m happy to be here, I’m happy to be here,” he emphasized, adding that he would never leave.
Kim Min-jae has recently been linked with moves to Manchester United and Inter Milan. After the winter transfer window, he was pushed aside in favor of Dier and Dürich.
With Dier sidelined with injuries in the first half of the season, Kim has been helping to compete with French center-back Dayo Upamecano for a place in the Munich defense, but his position has changed dramatically in recent times. After being a consistent starter in the first half of the season, Kim has started to find himself on the bench, losing out to new winter transfer signing Eric Dier.
In February, after three consecutive defeats in the league and UEFA Champions League, Munich boldly dropped Kim in favor of Dier and Düricht. Tuchel decided not to change his center-back pairing after the 2-1 home win over RB Leipzig in the 23rd round of the league in which Kim was dropped to the bench.
As a result, Kim started only one of the last five games and started the other four from the bench. With Munich having won four and drawn one of those five games while Kim Min-jae has been on the bench, it’s hard for him to get a chance to play.
Then, just like with Diricht, the rumors started flying. After spending the entire first half of the season on the sidelines with an injury, it was reported that he would leave the club at the end of the season, and there were even reports that he had fallen out with Tuchel.
According to Football Transfer, “The former Manchester United target has admitted that he is unhappy with his current role at Bayern Munich. “Thanks to Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s investment, United will be spending big in the summer, and defense is one of the areas that needs improvement,” the report said, adding that “Kim could be a viable option to try and sign this summer,” suggesting that new United co-owner Ratcliffe could be pushing for a move to bolster the 토토 defense.
Italian publication La Gazzetta dello Sport reported, “Francesco Acerbi, who plays for Inter Milan, is under investigation for racism. Their dream of reinforcing their defense is Kim Min-jae,” and the Italian giants are said to be targeting Kim.
Realistically, the chances of a transfer happening are not very high, but the local media is trying to ‘shake things up’ as they did with Derrikht.
Kim Min-jae also opened up about the transfer speculation after the recent A match against Thailand.
“I’ve been out for about three games now. Now I have to wait for my chance, and I’m showing good quality on the training ground. I’m not lazy and I’m doing well, so I don’t think you need to worry too much,” he said, adding that his position in the team is not a problem.
“I’ve never experienced something like this before. But I think I can learn something from it,” he said humbly, before adding, “Just because I didn’t play doesn’t mean I’m completely lost. I’ve always been confident in my abilities on and off the pitch,” he said, adding that he was motivated to compete.