MINSU Kim is set to write his name into Rangers history as the club’s first-ever South Korean men’s player.
His arrival at the club represents more than just the 12th addition of the summer transfer window for Derek McInnes. It is the culmination of a lifetime spent devoted to football and an unwavering commitment to the game.
Kim was born in Gwangju, the sixth-largest metropolis in South Korea and home to just under 1.5 million inhabitants as of 2020.
It is a city remembered for its hosting of the 2002 FIFA World Cup quarter-final between co-hosts South Korea and Spain, a country which would later play a formative role in Minsu Kim’s journey on and off the pitch.
Spain famously lost on penalties that evening when Real Betis icon, Joaquín, spurned the decisive penalty kick to send South Korea into an improbable last four berth.
Kim was born just under four years later in January 2006, and it was at the age of ten-years-old when his family made the bold decision to go all-in on a young Kim’s footballing career.
Accompanied by his mother, they emigrated to Barcelona, while his father and two sisters remained in South Korea.
He initially joined PB Cinc Copes, where he scored goals for fun, and after two years found himself at Premier Barcelona to continue his development.
"Spain is like my second country,” Kim said in his unveiling interview with RangersTV. “I have a lot of love for that country.”
A year later, he joined the ranks of Mercantil, renowned for its youth development in Catalonia, where former Napoli midfielder David López, who counted Minsu Kim as a teammate in Girona, spent the majority of his youth career.
The Covid-19 pandemic stunted the side’s games programme that year, but it was onwards and upwards for Kim as he joined Damm, another Barcelona-based outfit famed for their commitment to youth football.
It was there where he crossed paths with Liverpool forward, Víctor Muñoz, three years his elder, and Kim’s performances for Damm had put his name on the lips of several sporting directors in Spain by that point.
"I am an attacking player, and I make so many chances,” Kim added. "I’m direct. I score goals, and that’s the most important thing."
In 2022, Minsu Kim joined Girona, freshly promoted back to La Liga and a significant juncture in his career.
He was initially assigned to the B team playing in the fifth-tier of Spanish football, but within a year was already rubbing shoulders with the first-team in pre-season ahead of a campaign where the side made history by qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time.
After linking up with the senior squad once again the following summer, Girona moved to extend Kim’s contract in August 2024, handing the exciting Academy product his first-team debut in October against Real Sociedad in La Liga action.
That season, the youngster was a prominent figure in a memorable promotion campaign for the B team, scoring twice in the play-offs.
Having registered 25 goal contributions for Girona at youth level, Minsu Kim took his first steps in senior football when he was loaned to FC Andorra in the second-tier last season.
His league campaign in LaLiga2 couldn’t have gotten off to a better start as, by matchday six, he had already recorded two goals and two assists.
Kim’s pace and ingenuity were infectious, but his capacity to shoulder responsibility was evident when the side tumbled down the division amid a ten-game league winless run during the autumn.
Indeed, it was the South Korean’s strike in a 1-0 win over Real Valladolid in December which delivered a long-awaited victory for FC Andorra, with the goal arriving deep into stoppage time.
The second half of the campaign proved a happier period for the side, and it was a testament to Kim’s influence at the top end of the pitch that the side ended the campaign as the sixth-highest scorers in the league despite finishing in midtable.
"The style in Spain is very different from Scotland,” he commented. “I knew that this league is physical and intense, and I think I’m prepared to compete."
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