Defender Kim’s Achilles tendon injury keeps him out of the South Korean squad

The Korean Football Association said on Saturday that Kim Min-jae, a defender for Bayern Munich, has been cut from the South Korean team ahead of their home World Cup qualifying matches against Jordan and Oman because of an Achilles tendon injury.

Despite being included in coach Hong Myung-bo’s 28-man roster on Monday, the 28-year-old was benched due to Achilles tendon discomfort. Additionally, he will not be present at Bayern’s Bundesliga match against Union Berlin later on Saturday.

“We decided Kim Min-jae would need to take time to receive treatment on his left Achilles tendonitis and rehab during the international break,” the Korean Football Association told the local press. “We will decide later whether a replacement player will be called up.”

With Kim out, the team’s three center back possibilities are Kwon Kyung-won (Khor Fakkan), Jung Seung-hyun (Al-Wasl), and Cho Yu-min (Sharjah).

If South Korea defeats Oman in Goyang on March 20 and Jordan in Suwon five days later, they will have two qualifiers left and might earn one of the two automatic tickets to the 2026 finals from Group B.

With 14 points from four victories and two draws, South Korea leads their group by three points, ahead of Iraq. With nine points, Jordan is in third place, and Oman is three points behind in fourth.

While the third and fourth-place teams advance to a fourth round of Asian qualifying, the top two teams from each group advance straight to the North American finals.