Rangers transfer target Kim Min-Su is facing one-and-a-half years of military service – but there are ways he can secure an exemption.
Record Sport revealed that the Ibrox club are pressing ahead with a deal for the Girona winger, who has an £8.5million release clause in his contract with the Segunda Division outfit.
Rangers push for winger
Derek McInnes is keen to add more wide options to his squad, having already secured Daisuke Yokota before Gers pulled out of a deal to sign PSV's Couhaib Driouech.
Min-Su is next on their target list and talks with Girona are progressing, with hope that a deal could be done in the coming days. However, both club and player could face an issue further down the line should he become the latest summer signing.
Mandatory service rules
Military service is mandatory for all South Korean men aged between 18 and 28. They must serve a minimum of one-and-a-half years.
While most enlist at age 20, professional players often wait until 26 or 27 (K-Pop stars are able to defer until they are 30). Given his age, Min-Su could well have been and gone from Rangers by then should a deal to bring him to Ibrox be struck.
Exemption routes
However, there are ways he can secure an exemption, but it depends on being called up for the national team and how they perform.
Winning a gold medal at the Asian Games is one way, although Min-Su has not been included in the squad for this year's, meaning his next chance would be in 2030. An Olympic medal is another possible route to exemption, but given South Korea's last medal came at the 2012 Olympics in London, relying on doing the same in Los Angeles in two years' time is a big ask.
