Kim 137 points – Son 113 points – Lee Kang-in 84 points In the women’s division, Cheon Garam was selected as the best player.
National soccer team defender Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) was selected as the Korea Football Association (KFA) ‘Player of the Year’. He beat Son Heung-min (Tottenham), who attempted to win the award for five consecutive years.
Kim Min-jae received the men’s player of the year award at the ‘2023 KFA Awards’ held at the Mayfield Hotel in Gangseo-gu, Seoul on the 2nd. This is his first personal award. It has been eight years since Kim Young-kwon (Ulsan) in 2015 that a defender was selected as Player of the Year.
The player of the year is selected by votes from the Football Association’s technical development committee member, the national team’s power enhancement committee member, and reporters, and Kim Min-jae scored 137 points. Son Heung-min took second place with 113 points, and Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) took third place with 84 points. Kim Min-jae was pushed into second place by Son Heung-min for two consecutive years in 2021 and 2022. Son Heung-min is the recipient of the award with the most awards ever (7 times).
Kim Min-jae contributed greatly to Napoli’s rise to the top of the Italian Serie A in May last year for the first time in 33 years. Minjae Kim transferred to Munich of the German Bundesliga in July last year. As a member of the national team, he played 8 international matches last year, playing a central role in the defensive line as a center back and keeping 6 clean sheets (no goals conceded). Minjae Kim said, “(Last year) was a special year in which I accomplished the most in my life. “He will not stop here and will strive to improve further,” he said in his acceptance speech.
In the women’s division, Garam Cheon (Hwacheon KSPO) was selected as Player of the Year. This is also her first personal award. She beat Ji So-yeon (Suwon FC), the winner of the most awards ever (7 times), by 1 point. At the 2022 awards ceremony, Cheon Garam, who received the Young Player Award as a member of Ulsan Science University at the time, was named the best player in the women’s division within a year. Garam Cheon scored 4 goals in 12 A matches last year. On this day, the Korea Football Association presented a special contribution award to former national team coach Park Jong-hwan, who passed away at the age of 85 in October last year.
Reporter Kang Hong-gu windup@donga.com
2024-01-02 18:00:00
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