It has been confirmed that barring any hitches with the medical, Rangers will make Kim Min-su their 12th summer signing. That Rangers agree staggering £8.5M fee is not really that surprising at all.
Furthermore, in a truly bizarre and typically-Rangers-like fashion, he will become the club’s second-top fee of all time beaten only by Tore Andre Flo after Rangers met that release clause of £8.5M. Chermiti, of course, was £8M initial rising to £11M.
That figure has been confirmed by the Rangers Review. Ibrox Noise are more than a touch bewildered that a second-division Spanish winger with mediocre stats is costing that much.
Fee
But then, if this club is happy to shell £5M out for a third division German loser, why not close to double that for a second division Spanish one? Maybe that’s a bit harsh but it is very much Rangers-like!
His numbers are a mixed bag at best.
Just 4 assists in 40 appearances in LaLiga2, with 6 goals in the same timeframe doesn’t to us scream of a winger worth close to Rangers’ all-time transfer record.
His rating last season was 6.73 overall, which is ok. But in the grand scheme of things he was 319th ‘best’ in the league with that number. So not exactly a league asset. (that was of 617 players rated)
Things fare a bit better with successful dribbling. He managed 47 of those putting him 7th among all attackers in the league. This is clearly his strength, running with the ball. He also does decently for accurate crossing, managing 24% which places him 24th. That means around for every 100 crosses he throws in, a quarter get there.
Not so good
But unfortunately that’s as good as it gets.
We should point out that FC Girona loaned him out to Andorra last season and it’s his loan spell his numbers came from.
That Andorra didn’t sign him permanently (or try to) may say a fair bit.
His quality is that he will carry the ball a lot. And he will put in a fair number of crosses. He’s clearly good at retaining the ball and advancing with it. Plus he’s actually a righty despite being a left winger.
He’s the type that cuts in a lot, and managers like that versatility that he can also play on the right.
But £8.5M is a hell of a lot to spend on an unknown quantity who has never even been capped by his country.
He is only 20, so we’d imagine he’s all about potential, but it’s very random that Rangers are solving their winger issues with two Oriental attackers, one at a higher price than anything Celtic spent on theirs.
But end of the day, this one is going through (barring medical fail) and we’ll be intrigued if his contribution ends up strong like his dribbling and crossing, as opposed to the real currency of a winger which is his substandard goals and assists.
Rangers agree staggering £8.5M fee. A lot of money.