Hot 'South Korea-Japan alliance line' Ito AS→ Kim Min-jae goal 'fell in love'... Japan's "Kompany Princes Did It Perfectly" Praise

*This content was translated by AI.

Japan also praised the performance of the Korea-Japan duo of Kim Min-jae (30), Ito Hiroki (27), and Bayern Munich defense.

Kim Min-jae scored the come-from-behind winning goal in the 17th round of the Bundesliga in the 2025-2026 season away match against FC Cologne at Line Energie Stadion in Cologne, Germany, on the 15th (Korea time) to lead the team to a 3-1 victory.

Munich, which has been undefeated in 17 league games (15 wins and 2 draws) since the opening, led the league with 47 points.

On this day, Kim Min-jae started as a central defender and built a central defensive line with Yonatantha. The left fullback is Hiroki Ito, who recently returned from a long-term injury.

Kim Min-jae, who was firmly in charge of Munich's back door with a stable defense, scored the come-from-behind winning goal in the 26th minute of the second half when the score was tied 1-1.

Outside the penalty box, Luis Díaz's ball into the gate fell with his head just before it crossed the goal line. Kim Min-jae pushed it to the header and shook the net. Kim Min-jae, who had no offensive point since helping Leipzig to open the Bundesliga in August last year, scored his first goal this season.

According to "Foot Mob," which specializes in soccer statistics, Kim Min-jae performed very well on the day, with a 95% pass success rate (70/74 times), seven clearings, six recoveries, and three successful aerial ball competitions. Footmob gave Kim Min-jae the second-highest rating of 8.0 points in both teams. The highest rating is 8.3 for Diaz.

After the game, Japan also showed great interest in Ito's assist and Kim Min-jae's goal. Japan's "Football Channel" said, "Ito's elaborate kick was delivered exactly to Kim Min-jae's head," adding, "It is a historical scene that key defenders from both Korea and Japan collaborated on the winning goal on the world's best stage in Munich."

Japan's 'Sacker Digest' also said, "Ito's second assist this season was directed at Kim Min-jae. "The two players, who were iron-clad in defense, proved coach Kompany's trust by paying off in the attack," he said.

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*This content was translated by AI.