In the first year of his transfer to Naples, Kim Min-jae, who has established himself as a defender representing European football, wrote a new record before his debut in the UEFA Champions League tournament.
According to WhoScored.com, in the 2022-23 season UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match against Frankfurt held in Frankfurt, Germany on the 22nd (Korean time), Kim Min-jae made 30 long passes from the defensive camp to the opponent’s camp스포츠토토. It was successful, which is a new record for a single match in the UEFA Champions League this season. Here, the long pass is distinguished from the long ball by the concept of distance. 30 long passes in a single game is not an official Champions League record, but whoscored.com, a soccer statistics company that compiles records for each game, handles the detailed record.
On this day, Kim Min-jae contributed to the build-up by actively attempting a forward pass to the opponent’s camp. He did not cover his left and right sides, let alone the forefront, and proved his two-footed ability by not covering his right and left feet.
The highlight was in the 22nd minute of the first half, as he fell in the defensive camp, a long pass with his right foot was connected to the right side at once and led to a cross. Two minutes later, a left-footed pass reached Osimen, who was positioned at the forefront.
According to Squawka, on this day, Kim Min-jae recorded 148 touches, the most among the participating players, and the number of successful passes was also the highest with 125. The pass success rate reaches a whopping 94.7%.
Also, his record of 5 tackles, 7 clearings and 11 steals of possession was the highest among the players participating in the match. Squawka coined the phrase “Kim Most-Jae” because the key metrics were maxed out.
Foot Mob gave Kim Min-jae the highest rating of 8.7 among players on both teams.
In the match, Napoli won 2-0 thanks to Di Lorenzo’s second goal following Victor Osimen’s opening goal.
Napoli will play Empoli and Serie A away on the 26th. Then, on the 4th of next month, Lazio and Atalanta on the 12th, followed by two consecutive home matches, and on the 16th of next month, they will also play the second leg of the round of 16 at home against Frankfurt.