Kim Min-Jae played the full game and Harry Kane scored a multi-goal performance.
Bayern Munich recorded a 4-2 victory over Heidenheim in the 11th round of the 2023-24 German Bundesliga at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany at 11:30 p.m. ET. With the win, the Bavarians moved into first place in the league.
For the past decade, Munich has been the only team to win the German Bundesliga. Last season, they nearly lost the title to city rivals Dortmund, but pulled off the upset with a dramatic win in the league final. After defending their crown, the Bavarians will be hoping to sweep not only the league but also the cup and European competitions this season.
To do so, they bolstered their squad in the summer transfer window. They didn’t bring in a lot of players, but they did bring in players who are at the top of their game in their respective positions, including Harry Kane and Kim Min-Jae. Of course, the departures of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Luca Hernandez, Sadio Mane, and Marcel Xavi were a bit of a concern, as they thinned the squad’s depth.
This season, they’ve continued to cruise. They’re unbeaten in 10 league games (8 wins, 2 draws) and sit in second place behind “first place” Bayer Leverkusen. Despite Leverkusen’s momentum, there’s still plenty of time for them to turn the tables given their remaining schedule.
Munich is benefiting from a new crop of players. Kane, who became a “legend” at Tottenham Hotspur, has been in top form since moving to Germany. After scoring a goal and providing an assist on the opening day, he followed it up with a multi-goal performance against Augsburg in the second round. He was quiet in the third round match against Borussia Mönchengladbach, but then went on a scoring spree. In the fifth round against Bochum, he had a whopping five offensive points, including a hat trick, and against Darmstadt and Dortmund, he scored hat tricks in two consecutive games.
That’s a lot of goals. Towards the end of his time at Tottenham, he became more of a playmaker than a fixer, but Kane’s greatest strength was still his goalscoring ability. At the start of the season, there was speculation that he wouldn’t be a top scorer this season, as he was twice as far behind Stuttgart’s Serge Giroud, but he’s now top of the league’s scoring charts with 15 goals.
He made a strong impact against Dortmund. With Dortmund at home, it was expected to be a tight game, and it was. However, Munich took the lead in the fourth minute through Dayo Upamecano and sealed the win with a goal from Kane in the ninth minute. Kane’s scoring streak didn’t stop in the second half. He completed his hat-trick in the 27th minute off an assist from Kingsley Coman in stoppage time.
The game also saw Kane break a number of records. According to the BBC, Kane is the only player to have ever scored a hat-trick in a derby. He also needs three more goals to become the Bundesliga’s top scorer in a single season, and not just for England. Kane is the only player in Bundesliga history to have scored 15 goals in his first 10 games, with Gerd Muller doing it in 1968-69. He has already surpassed Serge Gnabry’s record as Munich’s top scorer last season, and no other player has scored more goals this season.
While Kane leads the attack, the heart of the defense is Kim Min-jae. Kim started the league opener and hasn’t let go of his starting spot since. Even with injuries to his partners, Dayo Upakemano and Matthijs de Ligt, Kim has been solid.
Recently, he was ranked 22nd in the Ballon d’Or. Last month, Ballon d’Or released its rankings on its official social media accounts. Starting from the 30th position, the list was revealed one by one, and Martin Ødegaard, Randal Kolo Moani, and Nicolo Varela were mentioned in that order. The “Korean Monster” Kim Min-jae was ranked 22nd overall. This was the highest ranking of all center backs, ahead of Jubeng Dias and Yoshiko Gvardiol.
He was also named the best player in Asia. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) secretariat announced the AFC International Player of the Year award through its official channels on January 1. The winner was Kim Min-jae. “Kim Min-jae had a successful season, winning the Italian Serie A title, and is currently impressing at Bayern Munich. For this, he is awarded the International Player of the Year,” the federation announced.레모나토토 주소
Kim Min-jae has become an integral part of Munich. But recently, he’s also been the subject of some controversy. Initially, the only professional center backs in Munich were Kimmich, Der Licht, and Upamecano. However, with the other two players suffering from frequent injuries, Kim hasn’t had much time to rest.
This concern was amplified after the last match against Galatasaray. In that match, Kim started and played the entire game. However, unlike in the past when he was consistently among the top rated players on the team, this time he had the lowest rating. According to soccer stats outlet Couch Score, Kim made four clears, one interception, one tackle, and a 93% pass completion rate, but he also struggled to keep up with Bakambu as he cut into the box. This resulted in a PUNK rating of 6.7, the lowest on the team alongside Sane.
That said, he’s unlikely to miss this game. As mentioned, there are few center back options available in Munich. Der Licht is currently out with an injury, and even Joshua Kimmich, who is often a steady hand up front, is out through suspension. Kim Min-jae is under even more pressure. Even soccer stats site Futscore predicts that Kim will start.
The good news is that it’s likely to be an easy game. Munich’s opponent, Heidenheim, is currently in 13th place with three wins, one draw, and six losses (10 points) in 10 league games this season. While it’s encouraging to see a newly-promoted team in the top half of the table, the weight class difference with Munich is significant.
Still, they can’t let their guard down. Heidenheim won 2-0 against Stuttgart in their last match. Stuttgart is one of the favorites to win the title this season, along with Munich, Dortmund, and Leverkusen. At one point, they surpassed both of those teams to top the league, and while they’ve fallen back a bit now, they’re still in third place with seven wins and three losses (21 points).
Munich and Heidenheim have only met head-to-head once before. And that was four years ago. Back then, Munich met Heidenheim in the Pokal Cup.
Unsurprisingly, the match turned out to be a brawl. Leon Goretzka, Thomas Muller, Serge Gnabry, and Robert Lewandowski scored for Munich, while Robert Gratzel scored a hat trick and Mark Schnatterer scored for Heidenheim. But it was Lewandowski’s 39th-minute penalty that sealed a 5-4 victory for Munich.
Ahead of the match, both teams announced their starting lineups. Munich started in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Kane, Sane, Muller, Gnabry, Pavlovic, Reimer, Mazur, Kim Min-Jae, Upamecano, and Saar, with Neuer in goal. Heidenheim countered with a 4-1-4-1 formation. Kleindienst, Westere, Söfner, Turjekau, Dinke, Maloney, Föhrenbach, Kimber, Mainka, and Traore filled out the starting lineup, with Muller in goal.
Heidenheim opened the scoring. In the fourth minute of the first half, a header from Kleindienst found Mainka in the box, but his right-footed shot was blocked by the defense. Munich fought back. In the eighth minute, they attacked from a free kick and Sane’s cross was met by Upamecano, who headed wide left of the goal.
Munich swallowed their disappointment. In the 10th minute, Sane received a cross in the box and tried a direct left-footed shot that was blocked by an angled defense. Munich opened the scoring. In the 13th minute, Kane took the lead with a right-footed turn and shot from a Sane pass in the box.
Munich pushed for a second goal. In the 18th minute, Reimer picked up the ball outside the box and unleashed an audacious left-footed shot, but the ball sailed well over the bar. Heidenheim was also looking for an equalizer. In the 20th minute, Dinki’s pass found Kleindienst inside the box, but his right-footed shot didn’t have the right impact.
Munich were desperate for a second goal. They had a chance in the 31st minute with a single pass, and after Sane beat the defense with a soft touch, he tried his luck with a right-footed shot, but the ball went just wide left of the goal. After surviving the crisis, Heidenheim also had a chance. In the 36th minute, Veste received a pass from Kleindienst and tried his luck with a right-footed shot from outside the box, but the ball went wide to the right of the goal.
Munich extended their lead. In the 43rd minute, they attacked from a corner kick and received a cross in the box, which Kane headed home for his first goal of the season. The first half ended with Munich holding a 2-0 lead.
Heidenheim had the first shot of the second half. In the third minute of the second half, Söfner received a pass from Veste and attempted a right-footed shot from inside the box, but his impact was not quite right and the ball went well over the bar. After surviving the crisis, Munich had a chance to add another goal. In the 12th minute of the second half, they attacked on the counter-attack, and after a pass from Sane, Kane tried his luck with a right-footed shot from inside the box that was saved by the keeper.
Munich made a change. In the 15th minute, Upamecano, Muller and Gnabry came off, and Gerreroux, Tell and Choupo Moting were introduced. Heidenheim began to chase. In the 21st minute of the second half, a quick counterattack led to a cross in the box, which Kleindienst slotted home with a simple right foot to split the Munich goal.
Heidenheim equalized. In the 24th minute of the second half, they won the ball in their own half through aggressive pressing, and Veste found the back of the net from inside the box to equalize. The balance didn’t last long. In the 27th minute, Guerreiro pounced on a second ball in the box to regain the lead.
Munich wanted to end the game. In the 32nd minute, they attacked on the counter-attack, and once again, Sane’s pass found Kane in the box, but his left-footed shot was well over the bar. Munich onslaught