Ji-soo Kim joins Kaiserslautern on loan | OneFootball

Defender Ji-soo Kim has joined 2. Bundesliga club Kaiserslautern on a season-long loan.

The South Korea Under-23s international made four appearances for Brentford’s first team last term and will continue his development by spending the 2025/26 campaign in Germany.

Phil Giles, Brentford director of football, said: “This is an excellent opportunity for Ji-soo to go and play competitive football at a good level.

“He has made good progress since joining us and we were very pleased to see him get a Premier League debut last year.

“We wish him all the best for the coming season and will be monitoring him closely.”

Ji-soo signed for the Bees in July 2023, initially as a B-team player, having played in 19 K-League matches for Seongnam.

A month later, he earned his first call-up to the senior South Korea squad, head coach Jurgen Klinsmann selecting him for friendlies against Wales and Saudi Arabia.

The young defender was a consistent performer for Brentford B during the 2023/24 season and was named on the bench for eight first-team fixtures.

Prior to the 2024/25 season, it was announced that Ji-soo would be promoted to Brentford’s first-team squad.

The centre-back made his Premier League debut in December 2024, coming on as a late substitute in the Bees’ goalless draw with Brighton and Hove Albion.