Kim Min-jae (27, SSC Napoli), the first Korean to win the Serie A championship, enjoyed the joy of dyeing his team-symbolic blue hair.
Napoli drew 1-1 in an away match against Udinese in the 2022-2023 Serie A Round 33 held at the Dacia Arena in Udine, Italy on the 5th (Korean time) to fill the final points needed to win.
In the 13th minute of the first half, Destiny Udoji scored the opening goal for Napoli. However, in the 7th minute of the second half, Victor Osimen acted as a solver and scored the equalizer. Osimen finished with a shot 스포츠토토 as soon as Hvica Kvarachhelia’s shot was blocked by the goalkeeper and rebounded.
With this, Napoli obtained 80 points (25 wins, 5 draws, 3 losses) and confirmed the early championship regardless of the results of the remaining matches. It was the moment when he won the scudetto (a shield pattern meaning winning Serie A) for the first time in 33 years. Napoli won its third title in its career following the 1986-1987 and 1989-90 seasons when the late Diego Maradona played an active role.
Kim Min-jae was also present at the scene of history. Kim Min-jae was delighted with the victory along with the crowd who flocked to the ground at once after the game. He moved into the locker room and dyed his hair blue with dye spray. He is transformed into ‘Blue Hair’, which symbolizes the team.
Napoli’s official social media posted two videos of the frenzied Napoli dressing room atmosphere filled with the joy of winning after the match. Kim Min-jae was captured in the first 15-second video.
Kim Min-jae stood in front of captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo about to pop the winning champagne. His co-workers dyed his hair blue and the co-workers shouted “KIM, KIM, KIM” and cheered for Kim Min-jae.
Kim Min-jae, who was standing half-naked with a white towel wrapped around him, was smiling shyly, and as the champagne burst, he was captured at the awkward sight. Just before the champagne burst, coach Luciano Spalletti hugged Di Lorenzo and the players cheered even more.
In the second 21-second video, the Napoli team sang joyfully while jumping around with Osimen standing on the table. It was a frantic party where champagne from the championship burst and laughter never stopped.
It was a meaningful win for Kim Min-jae. Kim Min-jae, who played in China (Beijing Guoan) and Türkiye (Fenerbahce), rose to the top as soon as he took his first steps in Serie A, one of the five major European leagues (England, Spain, Germany, Italy, France).
At the same time, defender Kim Min-jae proudly established himself as a key player, leading the team to the least number of goals conceded (23) in the league. He was even evaluated as one of the best defenders in the world and was recognized as a player receiving attention from big clubs.
Kim Min-jae also played a big role on this day. The football statistics media ‘Foot Mob’ gave Kim Min-jae a rating of 7.2. This was the third highest score in the team after Osimen (7.9), Hvica, and Robotka (more than 7.3). Kim Min-jae had a 95% pass success rate (86/91), 1 dribble (1/1), 1 long pass success (1/1), 2 successful tackles (2/2), and 5 ball possession recovery in 90 minutes. He contributed to Napoli’s victory.