At just 17 years old, Australian prodigy Nestory Irankunda is already a “freak” talent with “all the ability in the world”, according to the coaches and players around him.
After debuting for Adelaide United in the A-League Men’s at just 15, his star has rapidly risen thanks to an all-action style of play and a habit of scoring sensational goals and celebrating with multiple somersaults.
Now he’s landed a big-money move to one of the world’s biggest clubs, 33-time German champions Bayern Munich.
Here’s why he can be one of Australia’s brightest stars in the years to come – and why fans must be patient.
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THE ‘DREAM’ DEAL – AND WHY HE HAS TO WAIT
Irankunda is the latest in a long list of wonderkids touted as the ‘next big thing’ in Australian football, a moniker that brings with it an immense amount of pressure to succeed – a pressure that can weigh too heavily on a young career.
In the case of young ‘Nestor’, the expectations are perhaps higher than ever, if only because his potential is truly dazzling.
Adelaide United defender Javi Lopez, who played 250 games in Spain’s La Liga and captained Espanyol, earlier this year made a staggering claim about the 17-year-old’s skills.
“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,” he told KEEPUP.
Socceroos great Robbie Slater labelled him a “super talent” on Fox Sports News, while Adelaide assistant coach and ex-Socceroos skipper Mark Milligan told The Players Pod in March: “Nestor has all the ability in the world.”
Already, the young winger boasts a blinding quickness to rival the world’s fastest players, a fierce determination to dribble past defenders and attack the goal, and a thunderous right boot that rockets the ball like a supersonic missile towards the back of the net.
It is a potent – if not outright scary – combination of skills for opposition defenders and managers to contend with.
That sledgehammer of a right foot has already banked the forward a highlight reel of stunning goals most players would struggle to match in an entire career. And though comparing young players to those in the past is an imprecise science – and often not helpful – Irankunda’s striking ability and power is a weapon that might just be unparalleled in recent Australian history.
Little wonder then that around a dozen elite European clubs were competing for his signature this year. But Bayern Munich was always at the forefront of that transfer race and this month concluded a deal for Irankunda to join the German giants next July.
He told the club website after the move: “I’m happy to have this all finalised and to be heading to one of the best clubs in the world — it’s a real dream come true.
“I’ve worked hard to try and make my family proud.”
Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano claimed the deal was worth three million euros upfront ($A5m) plus add-ons, which would easily break the record for an Australian player. That number has since come into question, with the initial fee more likely to be just under $2m but with significant potential bonuses.
That puts him near the Australian record for a transfer fee, broken first by Jordan Bos (just under $2m, Melbourne City to KVC Westerlo in May) then by Marco Tilio (well over $2m, Melbourne City to Celtic in June).
International transfers cannot be made until a player turns 18 (except in certain circumstances), which won’t happen in Irankunda’s case until February – meaning he’ll stay with Adelaide United until the end of this A-League Men’s season before jetting to Germany.
These next few months are a blessing in disguise for the youngster: a crucial opportunity for him to get match minutes under his belt, but also to prepare emotionally and professionally for the challenges of adapting to life and a career overseas.
As Bayern’s academy chief Jochen Sauer said in a statement after Irankunda’s signing was announced: “We’re convinced of his potential and that he’ll take the next steps with us. The experiences of the next months in the A-League will definitely be very positive for his further development.”
‘Once in a generation player’ Irankunda | 01:00
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Although only 17, Irankunda has already featured 40 times for Adelaide United across three seasons, totalling 1,110 minutes on the park (equivalent to just 12.33 full matches). All of those came off the bench until this season, where he has started four times, with Adelaide carefully managing his workload as a youngster.
Adelaide United coach Carl Veart emphasised the importance of establishing yourself at the A-Leagues level before moving overseas, when he said last month: “We don’t want them to go too early and I think because we’ve seen that too many times that players go too early, go to leagues that are at a higher level.
“It’s important that we’ve signed a lot of the younger players to three-year deals so we can make sure we give them you know, 50, 60, 70 games before we send them off to a club where they can then be confident in what they do and achieve their next level.”
Adelaide has 22 league matches remaining this season excluding finals, so Irankunda could easily end up with 60 senior appearances under his belt before he hops on a plane to Germany.
Compare that to one of Australia’s other bright talents, Garang Kuol. Kuol similarly burst onto the A-League Men’s scene with a parade of excellent performances off the bench for the Central Coast Mariners.
He then signed for Premier League side Newcastle United aged 18, making the move in January this year. He left the Mariners having made just 22 senior appearances including four starts for a grand total of 669 senior club minutes (less than seven-and-a-half full matches’ worth).
Kuol initially struggled to adapt to life in Europe, barely earning any game time in a season on loan to Scottish side Hearts. However, he has since moved on another loan to Dutch side FC Volendam, where he is quickly finding his feet.
Kuol’s experience is similar to many other talented Australian teens who move to Europe with limited match minutes under their belt and subsequently struggle – though there are many factors that make moving to a foreign country as a youngster difficult.
But as Veart indicated, Adelaide is attempting to set their youngsters up for overseas success by ensuring their players only move after establishing themselves as A-League regulars.
And if that wasn’t enough of a silver lining in his delayed move to Munich, Aussie fans can count themselves lucky to get to watch a supremely exciting (and downright fun) player before he hits the big time.
No doubt that’ll include a few more goals and a few more celebratory backflips, even if it makes his mother nervous.
Irankunda joked: “My mum doesn’t like me doing it though! She’s scared I’m going to get injured doing it.”
WHAT MADE BAYERN SIT UP AND TAKE NOTICE
Let’s start with the obvious one: Irankunda is quick – almost unbelievably so.
Last month he was recorded hitting a top speed of 37.02 km/h against the Central Coast Mariners.
To put that in perspective, the fastest recorded speed in the Premier League last season was Kyle Walker of Manchester City, who notched 37.31km/h.
Speed tracking data was first recorded in the 2019/20 season. Since then, no other player has reached 37km/h. Erling Haaland (Man City), Darwin Nunez (Liverpool), and Anthony Gordon (Newcastle) were all in the 36km/h range.
It’s an even more impressive speed when put into the context of Germany’s top flight. His 37km/h-plus top speed would comfortably be the fastest since statistics were published from 2019/20. The current record is held by Karim Adeyemi at 36.65km/h.
Crucially, Irankunda has the physicality to match his searing raw pace. He is able to outmuscle or fend off defenders and boasts excellent balance as well as a strong understanding of how to position his body.
Remember, he’s just 17 years old and still has plenty of room to continue to develop physically.
Here’s what Bayern’s Academy director Sauer said: “Nestory is an extremely quick winger who dribbles and shoots well, with real drive towards goal.”
Combine the pace with his dribbling ability and a constant desire to take on defenders one-on-one, and Irankunda is particularly threatening in transition or in open space. That’s exactly how Adelaide tend to deploy the star winger – isolating him against defenders and allowing him to run at (or breeze past) them. It also explains why he has largely been used as an impact substitute early in his career, as he can take advantage of defenders running on tired legs.
Then there’s the shooting. Irankunda has a truly lethal right boot, capable of producing thunderous power – but with a technique that is simple and repeatable enough to deliver accuracy and consistency.
In fact, Socceroos veteran Awer Mabil even joked that he’d asked the youngster for shooting tips while they were rooming together in Australian camp back in March.
Mabil struck a fizzing goal against Ecuador that looked straight out of the Irankunda playbook, and after the game told Channel 10: “I had to turn on my inner Nestor. I’m rooming with him – I asked him for some tips!
“I nearly broke the net but it’s credit to Nestor.
“I’ve been watching his videos. It’s inspiring to me how he shoots. That’s Nestor right there!
“I just couldn’t do the backflip,” he joked.
Many of Irankunda’s goals come from shots driven in from a tight angle. But his first goal in the A-League – back in January 2022 at just 15 years old, the second-youngest scorer in ALM history – was an unstoppable free kick against the Newcastle Jets.
Irankunda said after that match: “Last year I was playing under-15s and they put me on free kicks. I just felt like I was there at this moment, at my old club taking a free kick.”
He’s scored plenty of impressive dead-ball goals since then.
Adelaide coach Veart said recently: “He practices a lot, sometimes we have to make sure he comes in because he’s always out there practising.
“I don’t even know what you can call it because the ball does things that I’ve never seen it do when he strikes at times. He’s certainly a special talent, but he’s still got to keep working to get to where he wants to get to.”
In total, he has scored nine times in 40 appearances in all competitions for Adelaide, plus 11 goals in seven appearances for the Australian U17 team – including four strikes in a man of the match performance last October.
WHAT NEEDS TO IMPROVE
For all of his immense abilities, there are clearly areas of the teenager’s game that can improve. That includes his control of the ball in tight spaces, and his defensive skills and workrate off the ball.
But the biggest challenge facing the youngster in the months and years ahead is not to do with skills or physicality, but mentality – handling the demands of being a professional (and the added pressure and attention he receives, given his talents).
It’s well worth remembering that Irankunda has had a unique journey to professional football – and his meteoric rise understandably is a factor in the teenager having not yet fully developed the temperament and discipline required to reach the next level.
Irankunda was born in a refugee camp in Tanzania after his parents fled their home in Burundi due to civil unrest. They moved to Perth when Nestory – one of eight children – was three months old, before settling in Adelaide.
After taking up football aged seven, it was obvious even as a young teen that Irankunda was a special talent – so much so that his older brothers quit the game so the family could afford Nestory’s playing fees.
Playing a midweek game for the under-15s for NPL side Adelaide Croatia Raiders in 2020, he was spotted by Airton Andrioli, then working in South Australia’s development pathways.
Andrioli told KEEPUP: “He did what Nestor does. Exploded like a bomb. He also did some things that you knew you get both – the good and the other stuff that needs to be worked on.”
It’s the ‘other stuff’ – the mental side of the game, the demands of professionalism – that Irankunda truly needs to develop.
Andrioli soon took a role as Adelaide United’s head of youth and immediately brought Irankunda into the fold, where he blossomed on the field.
But Andrioli concedes that – like many youngsters – Irankunda hasn’t always consistently lived up to the standards of behaviour demanded of elite professionals.
“We had issues with him at the club and we had to be patient. People were thinking we can’t deal with that. It was a lot of pressure. The kid is young. His family background, the way he grew up, it’s a bit different,” Andrioli said.
Late last year, Irankunda was dropped by Adelaide United for a big match against rivals Melbourne Victory for repeated lateness to team meetings and failing to complete the menial chores demanded of young players.
Coach Veart told CODE Sports: “That hurt him, and it showed, but he’s had a good reaction from that. That’s part of coaching, putting an arm around him, getting him to understand.
“He has to keep learning what it takes to be a professional. Not long ago he’d go down the park to play with his mates for two hours before or after training.
“The body can’t cope with that.”
Opponents also often find it easy to get under the skin of the youngster, who has reacted poorly more than once.
In March, he was lucky not to be sent off for sparking an all-in melee against the Western Sydney Wanderers after twice lashing out at Calem Nieuwenhof.
After that match, Veart delivered a clear message to the youngster.
“Nestory needs to learn to be a bit more cool-headed,” Veart said. “He can’t react like that, that’s not how you should play football.
“He’s still young and he’s learning, that’s another thing he needs to learn from tonight because some of the other referees might have sent him off.”
Earlier this month, Irankunda did get sent off after picking up two late yellow cards against Victory.
The second caution came his way for blowing up at referees after not having a (seemingly obvious) foul called in his favour.
While the red card was labelled “an absolute joke,” by pundit and Adelaide legend Bruce Djite on Paramount+, both Djite and coach Veart noted that Irankunda needed to better control his emotions.
Djite said: “The caveat (is): you’ve got to learn how to channel your emotions as well. It’s not always going to go for you,” Djite said.
“Referees make mistakes as well. (Irankunda) has got to learn not to lash out …”
Veart said: “Nestory has to be better, we’ve been working with him on his frustration and learning to control it better.”
Adelaide vice-captain Ben Halloran also said: “I think it probably was a foul on Nestor, and I think he probably did overreact. We don’t accept speaking to referees like that in our team and across the competition, so it’s a learning experience for Nestor.”
Irankunda’s brief career so far has been full of learning experiences – but there are signs that he is taking those lessons on board and slowly developing the kind of mentality that he’ll need to succeed.
After being dropped for his lateness last year, he worked tirelessly to earn back his place.
“I’ve been training my hardest to get myself back into the squad, and I’m happy that I have earned my spot,” Irankunda told the club’s website at the time.
Former Socceroo Robbie Slater told Fox Sports News: “He’s a wonderful young talent … he’s a kid, these kids are going to make mistakes. There’s a long way to go.”
Or as Milligan said: “I really believe he’ll end up where he needs to be but he very much needs his own time to find his way.”
One of the other reasons why his game-time was limited before this season was a tendency to drift in and out of games – showing flashes of brilliance but not consistency.
In February, even after scoring a winner for Adelaide against Brisbane, he revealed he was disappointed in his performance and showed a determination to improve.
Irankunda said: “I know I can score goals, I know I can sprint and everything. It’s my workrate – it’s something I have to work on obviously. I’m not too happy with my workrate. It’s the reason why I haven’t been playing much games.
“I’ve got to improve on it to become a top player I want to be. It’s my dream to be one of the best players in the world, an inspiration to the kids.”
Irankunda himself has said more than once that he’s still working on the mental side of his game.
But those around him are determined to do what they can to guide him along the way.
Socceroos coach Graham Arnold has taken a patient approach with the youngster, bringing him into the senior international side as a train-on player for a March camp – before injuries to other players nearly saw the teen tyro become the youngest-ever Socceroo.
In the end, Irankunda didn’t make it on the park against Ecuador and hasn’t received a call-up to the senior team since. Arnold is clearly avoiding rushing the player into the team and heaping more pressure on his young shoulders.
Arnold said at the time: “He’s got these special qualities (for) a kid at the age of 17 … the physique on him, the speed on him – it’s exciting.
“I want him to learn quickly and also to help Adelaide with that. That he sees what it takes from an Aaron Mooy or from a Jackson Irvine … to get to that level.
“It’s not only just on the field, it’s off the field, the behaviour but also how Maty (Ryan) and Aaron and these guys who have been professionals for a long time have achieved these things, (and) what it takes day to day to be a professional footballer.
“I think he will learn very quickly.”
He ended up rooming with Awer Mabil, a former Adelaide United star who Irankunda looked up to as a youngster.
He told A-Leagues All Access: “When I first started playing football here, I went to an Adelaide training session. Awer was training and I was really really small, I went to go shake his hand … [In Socceroos camp] I brought it up and he remembered, it was a really wholesome moment.”
Mabil, as mentioned earlier, ended up asking Irankunda for shooting tips.
Another Socceroos veteran, striker Mitchell Duke, summed up the attitude of the squad towards the young gun during that camp when he simply declared: “He seems to be a freak.”
WHAT COMES NEXT
There’s no shortage of professionals to look up to and learn from at both the club and domestic level. And when he does move to Munich, he’ll find a familiar face – his former Australian U17s captain Anthony Pavlesic. 19-year-old Pavlesic made the move from the Central Coast Mariners to Bayern in the middle of this year after a successful two-week trial at the German giants. He has adapted well to life in Germany, playing once for the reserve team so far and nine times this season for their Under 19’s.
But there’s a widespread belief that Irankunda will be given the chance to train with the first team when he arrives in the off-season.
Journalist David Davutovic told the KEEPUP podcast: “My understanding is that he will train with the Bayern first team when he gets there.
“He will have every opportunity to break into the first team. It’s not dissimilar to the deal that was done for [Canada star] Alphonso Davies.
“They are seriously looking at Nestory as part of their first team plans, so this time next year he could be playing in the Bundesliga … it’s extraordinary to think!”
Bayern Munich have regularly backed young guns to shine, including Jamal Musiala (20) and the aforementioned Davies (23), who made his league debut in January 2019 as an 18-year-old, just over a month after signing for the club. The pair have already entrenched themselves as mainstays in the team, while the first-team squad also features an 18-year-old striker in Mathys Tel who has made 17 appearances so far this season.
It wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to see Irankunda get his chance in Germany’s top flight – and for Germany’s biggest team.
Adelaide’s youth head coach Andrioli told KEEPUP: “Even at training at times, you play a ball down the line for him to accelerate and put the cross in … if you go to a club like Bayern … I think he will catch people’s eye because of that.
“That might open the door to be given a chance. I know they have top players there too but being Nestor and the way he is and knowing what he can do, I wouldn’t be surprised if the opportunity is given to him that he doesn’t do similar things to what he’s done here.”
German reporter Kerry Hau reported this month that Bayern is currently planning for Irankunda to play for the club’s reserve side – but stated the club believe he may already be too good for that level.
A Bayern fan account quoted Hau on Twitter, writing: “As of now, Nestory Irankunda is planned for FCB II next season. Until then, the club will watch his performances with Adelaide United closely.
“There’s talk at the Campus that the Regionalliga may already be too small for him if he continues to perform the way he’s doing now. Bayern believe Irankunda has the quality to make a similar development to Alphonso Davies.”
A loan deal is also a possibility.
But for now, with his move to Germany taking a back-seat to his remaining time at Adelaide, Irankunda just needs to keep playing, keep developing – and keep having fun.
That’s the message from Awer Mabil, who told SMH in March: “We just have to let the kid enjoy his football.
“He’s a baby. We have to let him just grow and be free because I think football is best played when you’re free – especially if you’re an attacker. When you have a free mind, your creativity takes over.”
Irankunda’s Adelaide United teammate Ryan Tunniclife said: “I think he’s got a really good chance of being a top, top player.”
“He’s got all the athleticism that you need to be a top player. He’s got the natural ability, the one-on-one skills of a striker, so I think if he gets the mental side of it right, listens to the older boys in the team and keeps his feet on the ground, I think the world is his oyster.
“It’s up to us as a group to keep his feet on the ground and let him play with freedom.”
That includes freedom from too much pressure or the expectation that he’ll be a megastar.
After all, he’s only 17.
His journey is just beginning – but it promises to be a very exciting one.
