'Kim Min-jae is back!'

Bayern Munich unveiled first-team training photos on the 25th (Korea time) through its official website. They shared some training scenes, confirming that Kim Min-jae has returned to the training ground.

Bayern Munich announced, "The starting players, excluding those called up for the national team, began team training ahead of the match against St. Pauli." The published photos included Kim Min-jae, who had been temporarily sidelined due to injury.

This marks his first official training return since suffering an Achilles injury ahead of the match against Union Berlin on the 15th.

Kim Min-jae missed the match against Union Berlin due to pain in his Achilles. The head coach of Bayern Munich, Vincent Kompany, noted, "Kim Min-jae was injured. I hope it won’t take long, but it will take several weeks until he returns."

It was also suggested locally in Germany that Kim Min-jae's recovery period could be quite lengthy, indicating that a call-up for the Korean national team’s A-match was not possible.

The Korea Football Association also decided not to call him up during the March A-match period, considering his physical condition. Kim Min-jae chose to focus on treatment and recovery, managing his fitness in Germany. A positive evaluation of his recovery pace followed as he returned to training just around 10 days later.

There was also controversy regarding Kim Min-jae’s injury situation. Coach Hong Myung-bo stated at a national team call-up press conference, “Kim Min-jae is an important player for both the national team and Munich. However, Bayern did not take protective measures in advance,” and added, “There had been signs of injury since last year. I pondered whether to use him, but I decided to give him a break for player protection.” A German football magazine, Kicker, reported, “Coach Hong Myung-bo criticized Munich,” triggering a debate.

In any case, Kim Min-jae's return is good news. It is a blessing for Bayern Munich.

Bayern Munich has maintained first place with 62 points in 26 league matches, but they have gone winless in the last two games without Kim Min-jae.

They are facing strong pressure from second-place Bayer Leverkusen (56 points). For Bayern Munich, who are aiming to reclaim the title after two years, Kim Min-jae's presence is crucial.

Bayern Munich is also in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League. They will compete in a home-and-away tie against Inter Milan for a place in the semi-finals on the 9th and 17th of next month. Kim Min-jae is needed to dominate the European stage.

[OSEN]