| Kim Ji-soo | |
| Birth Date: | 2004 12, df=yes |
| Birth Place: | Bucheon, South Korea |
| Height: | 1.92 m[1] |
| Position: | Centre-back |
| Currentclub: | Brentford |
| Clubnumber: | 4 |
| Youthyears1: | 2017–2022 |
| Youthclubs1: | Seongnam FC |
| Youthyears2: | 2023–2024 |
| Youthclubs2: | Brentford |
| Years1: | 2022–2023 |
| Clubs1: | Seongnam FC |
| Caps1: | 20 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 2023– |
| Clubs2: | Brentford |
| Caps2: | 0 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2019–2020 |
| Nationalteam1: | South Korea U17 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 16 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 1 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2023– |
| Nationalteam2: | South Korea U20 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 11 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Pcupdate: | 13:15, 26 June 2023 (UTC) |
| Ntupdate: | 13:15, 26 June 2023 (UTC) |
Kim Ji-soo (Korean: 김지수; born 24 December 2004) is a South Korean professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Brentford.
Kim joined the youth academy of Seongnam FC and worked his way up their youth categories. On 7 February 2022, he signed his first semi-professional contract with the club ahead of the 2022 K League 1 season.[2] In doing so, he became the club's first ever semi-pro player, as well as their youngest registered player in the league that season. On 18 October 2022, he was registered as a fully professional player.[3] He made 19 appearances in his debut season with Seongnam, earning interest from clubs abroad.[4]
On 26 June 2023, Kim joined Premier League club Brentford for an undisclosed fee, signing a four-year contract with the club, with an option for an additional year, and being assigned to the B team.[5] [6] During a season at the B team, he was on the list of senior squad in eight Premier League matches, but did not make his senior debut.
On 7 June 2024, Kim was officially promoted to the senior team,[7] becoming the first-ever Korean centre-back to be affiliated to a Premier League club.[8]
Kim is a youth international of South Korea, and played in the 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup and 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.[9] He became one of the most notable players in the latter competition after helping his team reach the semi-finals.[10]
In August 2023, Kim received his first call-up to the South Korea senior national team by head coach Jürgen Klinsmann, for two friendly matches against Wales and Saudi Arabia.[11] [12]
Kim is a centre-back who has power, height and quick feet. He is able to score, and can play with both feet. He has been frequently compared to Kim Min-jae in his country due to his playing style.[13]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Seongnam FC | 2022 | K League 1 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 19 | 0 | ||||
| 2023 | K League 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |||
Individual
2022[14]