Kim Min-jae named as one of the most value-increased players

Kim Min-jae of Napoli has been listed as one of the players who have more than quadrupled the value of the transfer market in the past year.

Transfermarkt, a European transfer media outlet, selected soccer players whose market value rose the most in 2022 by position and listed the top 11. Based on the 4-4-2 formation, the 26-year-old Korean player was named the central defender.

According to Transfermarkt, Kim’s transfer is valued at 6.5 million euros (appx. 8.7 billion won) in December last year. This year in the same month, his transfer fee is up by 28.5 million to 3.5 million (appx. 47.2 billion won) euros. The figure went up to 9 million euros in January and 25 million euros in September this year, ultimately rising to 35 million euros in three months, thanks to his performance at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Kim, who started playing in Napoli’s uniform in July this year, signed a contract effective until June 2025. Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti made clear that he would never sell Kim to another club in January next year.

According to the contract, the buyout clause for Kim will be activated for 15 days from July 1, the transfer market period during next summer. The buyout amount is known to be 50 million euros (appx. 67.5 billion won).


hun@donga.com