Rangers are on the verge of completing a deal for Girona winger Kim Min-su, with the South Korean set to undergo a medical at Ibrox as Derek McInnes closes in on what would be his 12th signing of a busy summer transfer window. The Gers have reportedly agreed a €10 million fee with the La Liga club for the 20-year-old, triggering his £8.5 million release clause after a chaotic few days of pursuing alternative targets elsewhere in Europ
According to Spanish journalist Nil Sola, Rangers and Girona have reached a “closed agreement” for Kim’s transfer to Scotland, with the winger expected to travel to Glasgow shortly to be put through his medical paces. RecordSport had earlier reported that a medical was booked for Monday, with personal terms not expected to present any real obstacle given the player’s own enthusiasm for the move.
Reports from Inside Futbol suggest the €10 million fee agreed with Girona will be structured across four instalments of roughly €2.5 million per year, though it remains unclear whether the deal includes performance-related add-ons or a sell-on percentage for the Catalan club. Girona had reportedly hoped to keep hold of Kim beyond this summer, but with his release clause sitting at a relatively modest £8.5 million and Rangers determined to strengthen their attacking options, the Spanish side appear to have accepted the move was always likely to happen.
Kim’s arrival is being driven, in part, by necessity elsewhere in the market. Rangers had been chasing a deal for PSV Eindhoven winger Couhaib Driouech earlier in the window, only for that move to collapse after concerns emerged during his medical assessment — with Driouech now expected to join La Liga side Celta Vigo instead. That setback appears to have accelerated Rangers’ interest in Kim as an alternative, with the Ibrox hierarchy reportedly deciding he represents better value than other options they had been considering.
Born in Gwangju in January 2006, Kim moved to Catalonia as a child and progressed through several academy sides in the region, including spells with Penya Blaugrana Cinc Copes and Escola de Futbol Premier Barcelona, before eventually joining Girona’s youth setup. He made his way up through Girona B before breaking into the first-team picture, and spent last season out on loan at fellow Spanish side FC Andorra in the second-tier Segunda División, where he impressed with six goals and four assists in 40 appearances.
Primarily a left winger by trade, Kim is also capable of playing off the right or in a more central attacking role, and his combination of pace, directness, and technical quality has marked him out as one of the more promising young Asian talents in Spanish football. He has already picked up senior experience with Girona in La Liga and the Champions League, giving him a level of continental exposure that is relatively rare for a player of his age moving into Scottish football. His performances at Andorra reportedly caught the eye of an intriguing cast of admirers beyond Rangers, including reported interest from Gerard Piqué, who was said to have personally pushed for the move.
One notable wrinkle in the transfer, highlighted by Yahoo Sports, is the matter of South Korea’s mandatory military service requirement, which typically applies to able-bodied Korean men before they turn 30 unless specific exemptions apply. Given Kim’s age and the years remaining before that obligation would need to be fulfilled, it represents a genuine long-term consideration for Rangers as they structure his contract — a five-year deal with a modest basic salary and bonuses tied to goals, assists, and Champions League qualification has been floated as a sensible template, minimising risk in the event Kim’s football career in Europe is later interrupted by national service commitments.
It’s a consideration that has become increasingly familiar to clubs across Europe as South Korean talent has grown in profile, and one that Rangers will need to navigate carefully given the scale of the investment involved.
Kim’s arrival would represent Rangers’ 12th signing of a summer that has already seen considerable turnover in Derek McInnes’ squad. Speaking after Thursday’s 1-0 win over Jablonec in the first leg of their Conference League play-off, McInnes was explicit about the need for further additions, stressing that the club still needs to add to the squad and that the players brought in would help lift standards across the group.
Kim will not be eligible to feature in the second leg of that tie against the Czech side, given the timing of his medical and expected registration, but reports suggest he could be available for Rangers’ Premiership fixture against Aberdeen on 30 August, depending on how quickly the paperwork is finalised following a clean bill of health. Given the club’s well-documented anxiety around medical assessments following the collapsed Driouech deal, Rangers will be hoping Kim’s checks proceed without complication.
His arrival would add further creative and attacking depth to a Rangers squad that has already been reshaped considerably following long-term injuries to key attacking players and a difficult start to the league campaign under McInnes. With width and directness identified as areas requiring reinforcement, Kim’s combination of pace and end product from his loan spell in Spain’s second tier fits the profile of player McInnes has been pursuing throughout the window
The scale of investment in Kim’s transfer also speaks to the continued financial backing being provided by Rangers’ ownership group under American investor Andrew Cavenagh, who has overseen a significant increase in transfer activity at Ibrox since taking a controlling stake in the club. Reports suggest Cavenagh has further plans for continued investment beyond the current window, positioning Rangers to remain active in the market as they look to close the gap on domestic rivals and re-establish themselves as a more consistent presence in European competition.
Should the move go through as expected, Kim would become one of the more eye-catching additions of Rangers’ summer rebuild — a versatile, continentally experienced young winger arriving for a fee that, by Scottish football’s standards, represents a considerable outlay, but one the club’s hierarchy clearly believe is justified given his age, profile, and potential resale value further down the line.
For now, all eyes turn to Ibrox and the medical examination that will determine whether Kim’s move to Scotland can be formally completed, with confirmation from both clubs expected to follow once the final steps are cleared.
