*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 3 February 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 26 June 2023
Nestory "Nestor" Irankunda (born 9 February 2006) is a professional soccer player who plays as a winger for A-League club Adelaide United. He will join German club Bayern Munich in July 2024.[1] Born in Tanzania, Irankunda has represented Australia at youth level.
Irankunda played youth football in Adelaide playing for Parafield Gardens SC and Adelaide Croatia Raiders at NPL level before moving to Adelaide United. He started his professional career when he signed a scholarship contract in September 2021, following his league debut in January 2022, becoming the sixth youngest debutant in A-League history. He scored his first league goal the same year, becoming the second youngest goalscorer in the competition.
An Australian youth international, Irankunda was called up to the Australia national team but only made appearances on the bench. At youth level, he helped lead the Australia U17 squad to qualification for the AFC U-17 Asian Cup, scoring eleven goals in total.[2]
Early life
Nestory Irankunda was born on 9 February 2006[3] in Kigoma, Tanzania, the third eldest child with two older brothers and five younger sisters to Gideon, a rideshare driver, and his wife, Dafroza.[4][5][6] His parents were originally from Burundi, but fled their home due to the Burundi Civil War escalating at the time. His father led his family to a refugee camp in Tanzania where Nestory was born.[4][5] They soon moved to Perth in Western Australia, when Nestory was three months old, before moving to the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia in 2013.[7][8] Growing up in a Christian home,[9] Irankunda found his love of football whilst playing with his older brothers in the yard of his home. At the age of eight, Nestory played for his first football club at Parafield Gardens after being spotted by the under-10s coach of the local club.[4][10]
During his junior years in Australian football, he played with Northern Wolves and Parafield Gardens before being scouted and signed by National Premier Leagues (NPL) side Adelaide Croatia Raiders.[4][11] During his time in the youth levels for the Raiders, he caught the attention of many scouts in the area including Airton Andrioli, the head of youth for A-League side Adelaide United, who eventually invited him to trial for the youth squad before offering a permanent spot after a couple of weeks.[11][12] When asked about Irankunda in an interview in 2023, Andrioli stated, "When you see a boy like Nestory, some players have that naturally. That gift of understanding and reading the game. Being street smart. You don’t see that a lot in Australian players. That’s why Nestory from the start had that kind of thing."[13]
In his first year for Adelaide United, Irankunda initially played with the reserve side.[12] After a couple of weeks, he started featuring for Adelaide United NPL side. Despite being 15 at the time, he accumulated 26 appearances and 12 goals in total for both the senior and reserve squad for the Reds.[12][14] On 27 September 2021, Irankunda signed a scholarship contract (his first professional contract) with Adelaide United.[15]
On 8 January 2022, at the age of 15 years and 333 days, Irankunda became the sixth youngest player in A-League history and the third youngest player ever for Adelaide United,[16] when he made his debut against rivalsMelbourne Victory, drawing 1–1 at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.[17][18] On 30 January, Irakunda scored his first league goal, a free kick in stoppage time to win the game 2–1 against Newcastle Jets.[19][20] His goal made him the second youngest goalscorer in the league at the age of 15 years and 355 days after Mohamed Toure who scored at the age of 15 years and 325 days.[21][22][23] He scored his second league goal, coming off the bench to score the winner in a 2–1 home win over Central Coast Mariners on 27 February.[24] On 24 April, he increased his goalscoring tally to three after he scored a stoppage time goal and helped his side secure a 2–0 win against Perth Glory.[25] His brief cameo won him the Tomas Dale Medal for his sporting manner in the club.[26] On 26 May, Irankunda was selected in the A-Leagues All Stars squad, alongside teammates Isaías Sánchez and Alexandar Popovic, to face Spanish giants Barcelona.[27]
2022–23: Breakthrough season
In November 2022, Irankunda would miss the first Original Rivalry match of the 2022–23 season after facing a month suspension from the club for turning up late to several team meetings, as well as not doing the "chores" associated to being one of the club’s younger players.[28][29] Upon his return, Irankunda scored his first goal of the season in a home match against Brisbane Roar on 4 February 2023. Adelaide United won 2–1 at full time after Irankunda scored the winning goal in the 82nd minute.[30][31][32] His goal received media attention and praise from manager Carl Veart simply stating, "This is the talent that Nestor has."[33][34] Irankunda dedicated the goal to Spanish teammate and friend Juande,[35] who broke his leg in a 3–3 draw with Melbourne City a week earlier.[36] Irankunda furthered his reputation as a key player off the bench after scoring in three consecutive appearances for Adelaide United in the matches against Melbourne Victory (1–1),[37] Melbourne City (4–2),[38] and Newcastle Jets (4–2).[39][40] He was awarded A-League Goal of the Month in February for his goal against Melbourne Victory.[41]
Troubled with disciplinary issues, Irankunda was openly criticised by the media for his rash actions. He notably starting a brawl in the match against Western Sydney Wanderers that led Wanderers' captain Marcelo getting sent-off for headlocking Irankunda after he provoked Calem Nieuwenhof. Another incident occurred on 23 April 2023 against Perth Glory when Irankunda received a booking for kicking the broadcaster’s pitchside microphone.[42][43][44] In the same match against Perth, Irankunda scored his 5th goal of the season in the 99th-minute of a 4–4 draw at the Perth Rectangular Stadium.[45] The goal brought his A-League career total to eight goals which surpassed Mohamed Toure's record as the competition’s highest under-18 goalscorer.[46] By the conclusion of the regular season, Irankunda was awarded the club's Rising Star accolade on 2 May, sharing jointly with Ethan Alagich for their performances during the season.[47]
In early May, beIN SPORTS Australia reported that Irankunda was in close talks with a move to German club Bayern Munich, although the forward later stated he won't be making a move to Europe in hopes of avoiding the mistakes of past Australian youngsters.[48][49] In light of this, Irankunda was asked about his transfer speculation by Bruce Djite, following a 2–0 victory over Wellington Phoenix, to which he jokingly responded, "Nah, nah I’m going to England. Bruce is my agent".[50] Irankunda would feature off the bench in United's final game of the season on 20 May where his side lost 2–0 against the eventual winners Central Coast Mariners in front of a Mariners' record crowd of 20,059 at Central Coast Stadium.[51] Irankunda failed to affect the match after facing a solid Mariners' backline that consisted of Nectarios Triantis and Jacob Farrell, who had successfully nullified his attacking attempts.[52][53]
2023–24
During Adelaide's 2023–24 pre-season, Irankunda returned to Adelaide United Youth, where he scored the winner in the Young Reds' 4–3 elimination final victory against Adelaide Comets in August 2023.[54] In the final minutes of the semi-final against Campbeltown City, Irankunda collapsed to the ground, having swallowed his tongue after hitting his head whilst attempting to make a pass. Dr Christian Verdicchio, who was one of the match officials present, promptly aided him to ensure he would be able to breathe. Irankunda was soon taken off the field and monitored before reporting to training the following day.[55][56][57] As cautioned by the doctor, he missed the Round of 16 clash against Western Sydney Wanderers at Marconi Stadium,[58][59] and subsequently, the semi final second leg against Campbelltown.[60]
Prior to his injury, Irankunda made one substitute appearance for the first-team in the 2023 Australia Cup.[61] Subsequently, a month later, rumours of a transfer agreement between Adelaide United and Bayern Munich resurfaced again after German journalist Kerry Hau revealed Irankunda's interest in joining the German club.[62] On 11 October, Irankunda was named as one of the 60 best young talents in world football by The Guardian, being the only Australian listed, among other talents like Endrick, Warren Zaïre-Emery, Paris Brunner and Simone Pafundi.[63][64] After 35 substitute appearances, Irankunda made his starting debut for Adelaide United on 20 October in a 3–0 victory over Central Coast Mariners at Coopers Stadium.[65][66] During the match, he reached a maximum speed of 37.02 km/h, setting a new team record for fastest sprint in a match; only Kyle Walker from the previous season of the Premier League exceeded that speed, reaching a max 37.31 km/h.[67]
Irankunda scored his first goal as a starter (and for the season) on 29 October from a free-kick in a 6–0 victory over Melbourne City at Coopers Stadium.[68][69][70] On 4 November, Irankunda was sent off in an Original Rivalry match against Melbourne Victory after receiving two bookings. Seconds before full-time, he reacted with frustration to a challenge from Chris Ikonomidis, resulting in him receiving his second yellow card for dissent against referee Alex King.[71][72][73] He missed the following league game against Sydney FC as a result.[74] He was later awarded the October nomination for the Isuzu UTE A-League Young Footballer of the Year for his preceding performances.[75] After his announcement to Bayern,[76][77] Irankunda returned from suspension on 26 November against Western United, managing one assist to Ben Halloran in a 3–1 win at Eureka Stadium.[78]
After accumulating two assists in his last three league matches,[3][79][80] Irankunda was dropped to the bench against Western Sydney Wanderers on 15 December, coming on after half-time in the Red's 3–0 away loss and third successive defeat for the first time in two years.[81][82] He eventually returned to the starting line-up after two further substitute appearances on 4 January 2024, being named against Wellington Pheonix at home.[83][84] Irankunda contributed towards Adelaide's two goals, including an assist to Hiroshi Ibusuki, in a 2–2 draw by full-time.[83][84][85] In particular, Ibusuki acted as a mentor for Irankunda,[86] forming a partnership which saw them both score against Sydney FC in a 4–3 victory at Allianz Stadium on 14 January; Irankunda scored once and his second of the season, assisted by Ibusuki who scored a hat-trick in the same match.[87]
Bayern Munich
On 14 November 2023, Adelaide United announced the sale of Irankunda to Bayern Munich for a club-record fee, with the forward set to join the club on 1 July 2024.[88][89][90][91] A report stated by Fabrizio Romano four days prior claimed that Bayern Munich submitted an offer for Irankunda worth £3 million with add-ons, potentially breaking the league transfer record set by Marco Tilio in his move to Celtic.[92][93][94][95] It has also been reported by other outlets that Bayern submitted an initial offer of €750,000 with a final payment potentially rising to over €3 million if agreed conditions are met.[96][97][98]
On 16 May 2023, Irankunda was added to the Australia squad set to play in the 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup hosted in Thailand.[107][108] On 19 June 2023, in the second round of the group stage, Irankunda scored twice within 18 minutes of the match. However, he missed a penalty in the 9th minute which prevented him from completing a hat-trick. The match ended with the Joeys winning 5–3 over China.[109] His second goal, a "world-class" powerful long-range strike, garnered widespread attention on social media due to its audacity and quality.[110][111] Irankunda scored in Australia's last game as his side were knocked out by Japan following a 3–1 defeat in the knockout stage.[112][113]
Senior
On 14 March 2023, Irankunda received his first international call-up to the Australia squad, being named as a "train on" player for the friendlies against Ecuador.[114] During his time in the squad, he befriended Awer Mabil, who called himself as the "big brother" and helped him settle in with the seniors. He also befriended youngster Garang Kuol who had experienced a similar journey through the A-League.[4][115] As a result of Riley McGree falling ill during his travel to Sydney, Irankunda was included in the match squad in both matches against Ecuador.[116] Although he could have potentially become the youngest player to appear for the "Socceroos", surpassing Duncan Cummings' record, he did not feature in either matches.[117][118]
"He can do things on a pitch that I haven’t seen other players do. So explosive. In training games, he’ll have three four-minute spells when no-one wants to go near him."
—Veart on Irankunda's playing style in training[7]
Irankunda is regarded from many Australian media as one of the greatest talents developed in Australia.[4][5][13] His goal-scoring prowess received many plaudits from media and pundits who recognised his skills and techniques, and even compared his free kick goal against Newcastle Jets to that of Cristiano Ronaldo.[121] His ability to draw fouls from opponents, albeit too frequently, led to Carl Veart demanding that referees protect the young prospect more and punish opposing players for tackles that could harm him.[122] In his breakthrough season, Veart's protection of Irankunda led to restriction of minutes on the pitch, having made all of his appearances off the bench, to ensure that the player develops properly. However, after seeing his effectiveness on the front foot, the media suggest that he is ready to become a starter despite his fitness levels and young age at the time.[123][124]
Deployed on the right wing by Adelaide United manager Carl Veart, Irankunda has shown significant progress in his game. Blessed with pace and exceptional dribbling skills, Irankunda utilises these attributes to stretch the field wide and disrupt the opposition's tactics.[4] When near the goal, he adeptly takes the ball inside, using his dribbling skills to maneuver past opponents, with his crossing adding to his play.[125] Additionally, Irankunda often opts to shoot rather than pass when inside the goal area, resulting in both goals scored and missed opportunities.[7] Physically, he excells in maturity and power, displaying explosive speed, balance, and strength.[7][126] Since breaking through at 15, Irankunda has showcased his creativity, flair, and fearlessness in taking on defenders with his speed and technical ability. His incisive touches and agility remain assets, particularly in the later stages of matches against fatigued opponents.[127]
Reception
With his consistent and impressive performances since his breakthrough season, Irankunda would receive praise from his teammate Javi López, who compared his development towards Argentine footballer Lionel Messi, remarking, "At his age, I only saw Messi and him at this level. The power, the skills. Never in my life at 17 years of age have I seen a player like him and Messi".[128] This was agreed by many coaches including international managers who had witnessed Irankunda play who said that his talents and approaches from big clubs were good exposure for Asian football.[129] Irankunda has also been compared to Alphonso Davies for their alike journey in football; Davies was born in a refugee camp in Ghana before residing in Canada, similar to Irankunda who was born in a refugee camp in Tanzania.[130]
Irankunda is recognised as a prominent figure of South Australian football, being named by Messenger Newspapers as "one of the top 20 South Australian athletes to watch in 2023,"[131] and listed again on 5 January 2024 by The Advertiser as "one the 24 South Australians to watch in 2024."[132]
Despite being one of the youngest members of Adelaide United's squad, Irankunda has been subject to criticism for his "emotional outbursts" and maturity on the football pitch,[133][134][135][136] which gained notoriety from his send-off in the match against Melbourne Victory in November 2023.[137][138] Veart has stated that the winger has been working on his frustrations but has to be able to control them better.[139] Bayern director sporting director Christoph Freund stated they were aware of this, although added that "he is only 17 years old. It’s better when the boys are involved with heart and passion."[140] However, following New Year's Day of 2024, Irankunda would receive praise after displaying calmness and maturity during recent matches, with Veart stating that "he's making good strides in that maturity."[141]
Irankunda favoured Spanish club Barcelona and idolised Carles Puyol and Gerard Piqué who influenced him to play centre-back as a kid before converting to a more attacking role by his coaches.[144] He often modelled his playing style to Lionel Messi for his agility and power.[9] Despite supporting Barcelona, his father's long-time support for Bayern Munich, since his time in Africa,[10] influenced his decision to sign for the German club.[9][145] In an interview in June 2023, Irankunda expressed his desire to retire with Adelaide United by the end of his career.[146]
During his upbringing, Irankunda's father drove him around to his football games before he was old enough to obtain his driver's license. His older brothers stopped playing football to help pay for his football fees when he played in NPL.[144][147] For this reason, he considers his father and brothers as his heroes, as well as his mother and sisters, who took care of him when he was a baby.[144] Irankunda is close friends with Mohamed Toure, who is also a professional footballer. He is often described as the "football Houdini" and Australian Jude Bellingham by Toure.[148]
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