Kim Min-Jae met with Manchester United representatives last week, shortly after returning from the World Cup with South Korea.
The news comes from Italian journalists Antonio Corrado and Mimmo Malfitano, who spoke during Campania’s television program Fuorigioco (Quotes via AreaNapoli).
“I can tell you that there was a meeting between Kim and his entourage with a foreign club at the Paradiso hotel in Naples during the week before the game against Udinese,” Corrado said.
“I couldn’t find out the name of the club. Who told me the news, he told me the news, he told me that they spoke in English, but he couldn’t get the name of the club.
“It is no coincidence that Napoli immediately took steps to renew the player’s contract and remove the release clause,” he said.
Malfitano, writing for Gazzetta dello Sport, added: “Then I’ll tell you: the club in question is Manchester United.”
That bombshell is likely to please fans, who will no doubt have seen the defender’s fine Champions League performances as well as his World Cup qualities.
Kim was part of the South Korean team that defied expectations by qualifying from Group H ahead of Uruguay and Ghana.
While he personally did not have the best of tournaments, his form in the league has ensured that he is already considered one of the best centre-backs playing in Italy.
The defender is imperious in the passing game while also possessing the pace to match the likes of Mohammed Salah and Darwin Nunez, as he demonstrated in Napoli’s 4-1 win over Liverpool in September.
With the chance of Harry Maguire being sold in the summer only increasing after his impressive World Cup, United will likely need to look for another defender on the market at the end of the season.
That is only compounded by Raphael Varane’s injury woes. While the Frenchman is undoubtedly a world-class centre-back, given that he misses several games each year, it is imperative that Ten Hag have genuine competition for spots at the back.
With a €45m release clause in Kim’s contract active for two weeks in July, this looks like a deal United could pull off relatively easily and one that would really improve the team.
