Conte gives green light for Spurs to sign Kim Min-jae: Reports

Fenerbahce's Kim Min-jae, left, in action against Trabzonspor at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium in Istanbul on March 6. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Turkish sports newspaper Fanatik reported Friday that Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte has given the green light for the club to pursue Fenerbahce center back Kim Min-jae this summer.

Kim, a Korean national team regular, has been linked to the Premier League club for years, with Spurs reportedly putting in an offer for the defender back when he paid for Beijing Guoan in the Chinese Super League.

Kim ended up moving to Turkish club Fenerbahce despite interest from a number of European clubs. Just last month there were multiple reports that scouts from at least five top-flight European clubs had been attending games to watch him in action.

Tottenham was one of those clubs, alongside Premier League clubs Arsenal and Chelsea, Serie A club Juventus and Primeira Liga club FC Porto. The Portuguese club was also reported to have attempted to sign Kim from Beijing.

According to the Fanatik report, Conte is interested in Kim's potential to slot into a three-man defense, a role he often takes for the national team. Everton are also said to be eyeing Kim.

Kim is a highly rated defender who offers a formidable physical presence in the backline that could see him hold his own against more physical players anywhere in the world. Kim's international performance has gained him a lot of attention, earning him the nickname "The Monster" for his ferocious defense during the 2017 Asian qualifier for the 2018 Russia World Cup.

Kim's absence at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — he was named as one of the wildcard picks, but Beijing declined to release him for the Games — left a devastating hole in Korea's defense and was likely a key reason the team fared so badly. He has 42 caps for the senior Korean men’s team and is one of the most consistent picks for that squad.

Interest in Kim from European clubs appears to have continued to grow since his move to Fenerbahce in August last year, where he has proven that his skills can comfortably transfer outside of Asia.

During this year's January transfer window, Fenerbahce reportedly turned down an offer from Italian club Napoli, and Premier League side Everton was also rumored to have put in a bid.

When the 2021-22 season ends, Kim will technically still have three years left on his contract with the Turkish club. But if the offers do start to flood in this summer, Fenerbahce will likely eventually take the money and allow Kim to move west to a higher-profile league.

Fanatik claim Kim has a release clause worth about £19 million ($24.7 million) in his contract and Fenerbahce will not accept a lower offer.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]