Kim played for
Suwon Samsung Bluewings and
Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma before joining
West Bromwich Albion. He led each team's
K League title, and his technical abilities was likened to
Paul Scholes in South Korea. Kim spent a few days on trial at West Brom in December 2007, and could be loaned to the club from February with an option for a permanent switch at the end of the season. He scored his first goal for West Brom in the final match of the season against
Queens Park Rangers, eight minutes after coming on as a second-half substitute. West Brom went on to win 2–0, securing them the
Football League Championship title and promotion to the
Premier League. On 28 May, he completed the move to West Brom for £550,000. Kim made his Premier League debut on 16 August 2008 against Arsenal, where they lost the match 1–0. He scored once after the permanent move, in a 2–2 draw with Burnley in the FA Cup on 24 January 2009. After one and a half years in
West Bromwich, he returned to South Korea. Near the end of his playing career, he played for
Malaysia Super League side
Negeri Sembilan, and
USL Championship side
Indy Eleven. ==International career==