The decision is partly linked to Dayot Upamecano's contract situation. The France international had entered the final year of his previous deal, attracting interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid. However, Bayern managed to fend off that interest by securing his long-term future in January.
Upamecano enjoyed an outstanding campaign last season, forming an impressive partnership with Jonathan Tah. The latter arrived from Bayer Leverkusen on a free transfer last off-season and also produced excellent performances.
Bayern had initially been prepared to consider offers for Kim Min-jae, but the South Korean was determined to stay in Munich. His strong start to the new campaign has further encouraged the club to retain him.
Sporting director Max Eberl believes Bayern possess world-class defensive depth and singled out Kim for rediscovering his best form over the past 12 months.
"It's simply the situation we have with Jona, Upa and Min-Jae. We now have three clear centre-backs, all three world-class, you have to say that," said Eberl.
"I think there are certainly quite a few clubs who envy us for the quality of these three players. Of course, we're going to need all of our players given the sheer number of matches. Min-Jae really became much more stable and consistent last season, and he's continuing that now."
Hiroki Ito provides another option, with the Japanese international capable of playing centrally or at left-back. Although injuries have restricted his time at Bayern, he now appears set to stay and should receive opportunities as the club competes on multiple fronts.
Bayern have instead focused their off-season spending on other areas, investing 110 million euros in Nathaniel Brown and Ismael Saibari to reinforce the full-back, attacking and midfield positions.
