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Will Kim Min-jae return after taking a break.

Bayern Munich will face Union Berlin in the 13th round of the German Bundesliga in the 2023-24 season at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, at 11:30 p.m. on the 2nd. Munich is second in the league with 10 wins and 2 draws (32 points), and Berlin is 17th in the league with 2 wins, 1 draw and 9 losses (7 points).

Munich's main concern ahead of the game is the return of Kim Min-jae. Kim Min-jae took a break from facing Copenhagen in the 5th Group A match of the UEFA Champions League (UCL) held on the 30th of last month. on behalf of Kim Minjae Upamecano and Leon Goretzka formed center backs.

It seems that it has not been decided yet whether Kim Min-jae will take a break in the next game. After facing Copenhagen, manager Thomas Tuchel said, "Kim Min-jae expects the weekend to be enough. However, we won't know until tomorrow (Thursday) and the day after tomorrow (Friday) he explained.

FCBINSIDE, which delivers the news of Munich, looked at the possibility of a starter against Berlin. The media said, "Kim Min-jae has already participated in team training again, and he is likely to play again against Berlin. However, Goretzka predicted that if Kim Min-jae is impossible, he will have to play as a central defender again.

Kim Min-jae was excluded from the list against Copenhagen and will take a break after 15 games. Kim Min-jae was able to break the overwork cycle of starting 15 consecutive games by taking a break on the day. Kim Min-jae started 15 consecutive games after moving to Munich and continued to play. Kim Min-jae, who wore a Munich uniform last summer, played as a substitute in the second half of the DFL-Super Cup against Leipzig, his debut. Since then, all but one game has been started and most of them have played full-time.

He has played 24 games in all competitions this season. He played 12 Bundesliga matches, 4 UEFA UCL matches, 1 DFB-Pokal match, 1 DFL-Super Cup match and 6 Taegeuk mark. During the season, I was able to take a break in just two games, including that day's game.

There's a reason. This is because Munich's center back resources are extremely scarce. Munich started the season with just three centre-backs this season. Including Kim Min-jae, Upamecano and Matthijs de Ligt are all there is. All three center backs are world-class defenders, but it was difficult for the three to play a tight schedule in the first place.

In the case of big clubs such as Munich, they play as few as 50 games to as many as 60 games in a season. Therefore, the role of rotation resources is as important as the main players. But Munich overlooked this. In the transfer market last summer, Josip Stanisic was suddenly sent to Leverkusen on loan. On top of that, there are only three center backs left as they are transferred to Bangjamain Pavard.

If even one person was injured, it would have been a bad news. However, bad news became a reality for Munich from the beginning of the season. Kim Min-jae and Upamecano mainly formed a defensive line as De Licht failed to recover his normal condition due to an injury early in the season.

Under these circumstances, Upamecano collapsed. He was substituted for Freiburg in October. The injury was so severe that he dropped out of the French national team in October. De Licht collapsed again shortly after returning from injury.

The situation was very serious. "De Licht suffered an MCL injury (internal ligament) and a capsule injury in his right knee," said Fabrizio Romano, a European football news reporter. According to Bild, De Licht will be out for four to six weeks.

Fortunately, Upamecano filled the gap with his return. As such, Upamecano and De Ligt took some rest due to injuries during the season. However, during that period, Kim Min-jae was not given any rest. We're in a situation where we have to continue to lead the team's defense.

Germany's "Sport 1" even worried. "Kim Min-jae has a busy schedule even during the A-match period. There will be matches against China in Singapore on the 16th and Shenzhen, China on the 21st. And in less than 80 hours, he will return to the game against Cologne on the evening of the 25th. If you add all the travel distances, it will be about 20,000 kilometers," he said, even worried.

However, Kim Min-jae says he doesn't care. When asked about the recent controversy over abuse in the mixed zone after the showdown with Singapore on the 16th, Kim Min-jae said, "I think I told you last time, but I think it's better to run than not to run." He also dismissed the controversy, saying, "You have to run while managing how you can maintain your concentration without breaking it."

But it was too much. In the end, Kim Min-jae was given a break against Copenhagen. Attention is focusing on whether he will be given two consecutive games of rest.Berlin, which made a splash last season, has been replaced by a manager as it has been sluggish this season. There is a possibility that Kim Min-jae will be rested for two consecutive games because the power gap is so large that he has fallen to 17th place in the Bundesliga.

After that, you can get another break during your schedule. Munich will face Eintracht Frankfurt on the 9th after the match against Berlin. Even if Kim Min-jae plays in this game, he can rest again on the next schedule. This is because it is the sixth round of the UEFA UCL against Manchester United. Munich is located at the top of the group, so there is a possibility of rotation. After that, Munich will meet Stuttgart (December 18) and Wolfsburg (December 21) in succession and begin the winter break.

It is highly likely to be a honey break for Kim Min-jae. If the Bundesliga enters the winter break, Kim Min-jae can have time to recharge. After that, it is expected to be able to prepare for the upcoming 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Qatar Asian Cup.