Nestory Irankunda - The future Bayern wonderkid hyped to be the next Sadio Mané

Who is Bayern signing Nestory Irankunda? The Adelaide United wonderkid scouted

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Bayern Munich have signed Australian wonderkind Nestory Irankunda for the 2024/25 season from Adelaide United. The A-League Men side received an initial fee of €3.4 million plus bonuses—a record transfer by some margin for Adelaide United. Irankunda has signed a long-term deal with the Bundesliga giants. "We've had Nestory on our radar for some time and we're pleased we've reached an agreement with him and Adelaide United on a move to Munich for next summer,” director of youth development Jochen Sauer said. “We'd like to thank the United management for the good talks. Nestory is an extremely quick winger, a strong dribbler, a finisher with good drive towards goal. We're convinced by his potential and that he will take the next steps with us.”

Born in Tanzania, the winger has scored 11 goals in seven games for Australia’s U17 national team and nine goals in 39 games across all competitions for Adelaide United. Making his debut in January 2022, Irankunda became the second youngest goalscorer in Adelaide’s A-League history when he scored a fantastic free-kick goal aged 15 years, 11 months, and 21 days. The plan for now is that Irankunda will remain in Australia for the rest of this season and for parts of the 2024 season. The winger will turn 18 next February at which point Irankunda will be allowed to make the move to Germany. "The experiences in the coming months in the A-League will certainly have a positive effect on his ongoing development," Sauer said.

“Since the word go, Nestory has been a walking highlight reel,” Australian football journalist Sacha Pisani said to Transfermarkt while pointing out that fans have been attending Adelaide games just to get a glimpse of Irankunda, who might be the most exciting talent to emerge out of Australia. And indeed, a quick glance on YouTube does show that Irankunda is a walking highlight reel. “In his own words, he only scores bangers, and it couldn't be truer. Since scoring that magical free-kick as a 15-year-old, Nestory has continued to deliver. Adelaide, led by head coach Carl Veart, have wrapped him up in cotton wool amid the hype and attention. Despite the calls to usher him into the starting XI, the club stuck to their guns, and it has worked wonders.” Indeed, Irankunda has since developed into a regular starter.

The next Sadio Mané? What can Bayern expect from Irankunda?

But what can Bayern fans expect from the young Australian? “Irankunda is an explosive, powerful inside forward with world-class ball striking,” the people behind the popular @Scout_Aussie X account explained to Transfermarkt. “He has incredible acceleration and loves to take on players one-v-one.” The stats underline those observations. According to Wyscout, Irankunda ranks fifth in the A-League this season with 29 one-v-one dribbles overall and fourth with 10.12 dribbles per 90 minutes. Overall, Irankunda ranks 17th in the A-League, with 51.72% won dribbles this season.

The scouts behind @Scout_Aussie also pointed out that Irankunda is a player who thrives in big spaces and is at his best when he has an open field in front of him. That, in theory, could make him a perfect player for Bayern. But Irankunda will have some work ahead of him if he wants to make it at Bayern. “Technically, his game can be polished—he could improve in tighter spaces,” @Scout_Aussie pointed out. “His finishing is excellent—left foot and right foot, and he is strong enough to push players off the ball. He can take set pieces confidently. His work off the ball can improve, but with his speed and power, he could easily become a real pressing weapon.”

According to Pisani, Adelaide United have used those skills to bring him on late to run at tired defenders and use the space to be a dangerous weapon. That has changed a bit this season, as he is already making the next step in his development. “Now, he is slowly maturing and adding layers to his game,” Pisani said. In terms of comparable players, the scouts highlighted a former Bayern Munich winger. “The player I’ve always compared him to is Sadio Mané,” one of the scounts behind @Scout_Aussie said. “Similar size, speed, power, and both have top ball striking abilities. The two also love to take on defenders and are brilliant in transition and big spaces. But Mané’s technique is more polished.”

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Irankunda to Bayern Munich: The face of an exciting future for Australia

Although it is always tough to say what the ceiling is for a 17-year-old player playing in a league like the A-League. After all, Australia’s top flight is still some ways removed from Europe’s top five divisions. But Bayern have had some good experience thinking outside the box, signing a 17-year-old Alphonso Davies for a relatively small fee from the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2018 and turning him into a world-class left back.

Then, in 2022, Bayern signed the relatively unknown Mathys Tel from Stade Rennais, and the teenage striker has already developed into an incredible weapon from the bench, and it is only going to be a matter of time before he becomes a consistent first-team player. The scouts have similar expectations when it comes to Irankunda. “His ceiling? Hard to say for sure. I think he could become a starting player in a big club in a top league,” the scouts at @Scout_Aussie said.

“It will be interesting how Bayern Munich handle him when he does eventually leave Australia,” Pisani added. “Will they loan him out or not? Whatever they do, having his Australia U17s teammate Anthony Pavlesic there with him in Munich will be a huge help. He is the face of an exciting future in Australia.”

From December 1 to 24, we introduce new players from different countries born in 2006 and 2007. Area managers, users, and data scouts come into play as experts throughout the series. You can follow all those players by adding them to your TM watchlist.