Irankunda feeling at home in Socceroos, eyes Bayern breakthrough
With his third international window and third start as a member of the Socceroos in the books, teenage phenom Nestory Irankunda feels at home in the national team setup and that he’s now proven he can play at the international level.
Tapped to start in last Thursday’s World Cup qualifier against China, Irankunda ticked off his fifth international appearance at just 18 years old in that game, playing the opening half of the 3-1 win in his hometown of Adelaide already a third start for the Socceroos.
However, with new boss Tony Popovic opting to start Riley McGree and Ajdin Hrustic against Japan, their skill sets suited to the inverting role the coach has assigned his wingers in his new 3-4-2-1 scheme than his at this stage of his career, Irankunda didn’t see the pitch in the Socceroos 1-1 draw with the Samurai Blue in Saitama.
This shift in the on-field demands that has occurred with the exit of Graham Arnold and the appointment of Popovic – as well as the off-field expectations – has been one of the main narratives across the past window and before he jetted back off to re-join club side Bayern Munich, Irankunda said the experience had been a valuable one.
“It's been good, intense,” he told media following the Japan game. “Still a lot that I've got to work on but I've learned a lot as well. [Next is] just the same that I always do - go back, work hard, perform, try and get minutes.
“I feel like I belong here. Everybody that gets called up belongs here. I've proven myself over the period I've been playing that I can do it at a high level. So I'm happy to always get the call from the coaches to come in here.
“It's been a very special camp. Playing in front of friends and family back in Adelaide with a few of the Adelaide boys was a great moment for me and I'll cherish that forever.
“Also to be here in Japan, even though I didn't play, I'm so happy. Obviously, there was a lot of quality on the pitch. But yeah, always happy to be around the environment.”
Leaving Adelaide United to join the Bavarian giants in a record-setting deal during the offseason, Irankunda has made a strong start to life in Germany, named in his new club’s extended Champions League squad for the league phase of the competition and training with the first team of Vincent Kompany.
Though on the bench for a DFB-Pokal game in August, he’s still waiting to play his first minutes of senior football with the Bundesliga powers, scoring three goals and registering an assist across six appearances for the youth team in the Regionalliga Bayern and making his UEFA Youth League debut in a win over Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb.
The process of working one’s way into the first team of a side like Bayern is, of course, a long one, with the grind of the multiple commitments of the season yet to force Kompany to truly dig into his reserves. In the cutthroat world of European football, it can sometimes take years for these chances to come and they can be taken away just as suddenly as they appear.
But Irankunda knows that when his opportunity does come, he needs to be ready to take it.
“Hopefully be on the bench at least - it's gonna be a great achievement for me,” he said. “I'm training with the first team every day, so I'm learning new things every day as well. So hopefully I get a chance [to play first-team football soon.
“I enjoy the life there, it's nice. It's different to back home, [I’m] all on my own so try to make the most of it
“[I get] the same advice from everyone: just 'you've got the world at your feet, put your head down, work hard' and I know that as well. I just have to work hard and my chances will come and I'll take them.”