Welcome to A-Leagues Alumni: A weekly piece that keeps you up to date with the best stories from our products flying the flag abroad. The acronyms of the A-Leagues club(s) each player has represented are in brackets after their name.
Bayern superstar’s exit on the cards as Irankunda shines again
With the European summer transfer window set to close on August 30, news of an impending departure for a Bayern Munich superstar could have huge ramifications for one of Australia’s brightest young talents.
Following various reports French international winger Kingsley Coman is actively looking to leave the club before Friday’s transfer deadline, Nestory Irankunda‘s (ADL) two-goal haul for Bayern Munich II could hardly have come at a better time.
Lining up in what was his second game for Bayern’s reserve side, Irankunda once again proved his class, scoring two goals and registering an assist in a Player of the Match display against Wurzburger Kickers in the German Regionalliga.
And while he may be starring in the reserves, Irankunda has certainly caught the eye of new Bayern boss Vincent Kompany since the Belgian legend took charge in Bavaria.
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The 18-year-old featured numerous times during the club’s pre-season fixture list, was included in the travelling squad for their tour of South Korea whilst he was even an unused substitute in the club’s 4-0 DFB Pokal win over Ulm – a game which featured the likes of Thomas Muller, Harry Kane and Coman.
Now with Coman likely to be departing Allianz Stadium before the end of the month, the club could look to promote Irankunda to the first team squad instead of bringing in a replacement for the 28-year-old French international.
A further boost to Irankunda’s chances of securing first team minutes under Kompany this season is the fact fellow winger and recent acquisition, Bryan Zaragoza, has been sent out on loan to La Liga side Osasuna for the 2024-25 season.
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Bayern kicked off their Bundesliga campaign with a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Wolfsburg at the weekend, with Coman coming on as a second-half substitute.
With Kompany now at the helm, Bayern are looking to recapture their Bundesliga crown after Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen ended the Bavarian side’s 11-year run of titles last season.
Circati stars as Parma stun AC Milan
Former Perth Glory academy player Alessandro Circati‘s (PER) has taken to top-flight football in Italy like a duck to water.
Having played the full 90 minutes in Parma’s 1-1 draw with Fiorentina in their first game back in Serie A, Circati then followed that performance up with another strong showing as Parma stunned AC Milan, recording a 2-1 win at Stadio Ennio Tardini.
Coming against a formidable attacking Milan line-up which featured the likes of Rafael Leao, Christian Pulisic and Luka Jovic, Circati performed admirably; making six headed clearances as well as winning all of his tackles.
Having previously been linked with some of European football’s biggest clubs including the likes of former Italian champions Napoli and La Liga giants Atletico Madrid, Circati’s early season performances will certainly be catching the eye of those admirers.
Up next for Parma is a tricky trip away to the aforementioned Napoli in Matchday Three, with the 2023-24 Scudetto winners now being coached by Antonio Conte and are currently in the midst of a re-build under the former Juventus man.
‘Vine Time’ goes stateside as Whyman suffers late heartbreak on debut
More than two months after securing her move to NWSL side North Carolina Courage, fans finally got to see new signing Cortnee Vine (SYD) in action.
Playing in Courage’s away clash against 12th placed Seattle Reign FC, Vine got through 86 minutes of hard work before her side ultimately succumbed to a gut-wrenching 97th minute own goal scored by goalkeeper Casey Murphy in a 1-0 loss.
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Vine is no doubt still adapting to life in the states after a whirlwind period which saw her leave Sydney FC, sign for North Carolina Courage and then head straight off to Paris to represent Australia at the 2024 Olympic Games.
Fellow Aussie and former Sydney FC star Charlotte McLean (SYD) was an unused substitute for Courage, who currently sit 7th on the ladder, but both her and Vine will be hoping to feature more prominently in the coming weeks.
Elsewhere in the NWSL, former Liberty A-League star Emily van Egmond (NEW, CAN, WSW, MCY) played the full 90 minutes as San Diego Wave were beaten 2-1 by Angel FC.
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A double from Alyssa Thompson proved to the difference between the two sides as US Men’s National team great Landon Donovan kicked off his San Diego tenure with a defeat, a game which Kaitlyn Torpey (MCY) missed out on due to injury.
Meanwhile, current Matildas number one Mackenzie Arnold (PER, CAN, WSW, BRI) is still waiting to make her Portland Thorns debut after she was an unused substitute during their 2-0 defeat to Gotham FC.
Speaking of goalkeepers, Jada Whyman (SYD, WSW) made her Swedish Damallsvenskan debut last weekend in what would prove to be a heart-breaking 3-2 loss.
Having signed for Swedish side AIK at the beginning of the month, Whyman finally got her chance between the sticks as her side faced Vittsjö GIK.
However, despite taking a 2-1 lead on the approach to half time the home side succumbed to two goals in the last ten minutes of the contest and were ultiamtely handed an 11th loss of the season.
To make matters worse, that defeat leaves AIK sat 12th on the ladder with 11 points from 16 games, and now just two points clear of the relegation zone.
Elsewhere abroad…
Over in England, Ange Postecoglou‘s (BRI, MVC) Tottenham have their first win of the new Premier League season.
Flanked by former A-Leagues men Mile Jedinak (CCM), Nick Montgomery (CCM) and Sergio Raimundo (CCM), Tottenham bagged all three points in North London as goals from Yves Bissouma, Cristian Romero and a double from Son Heung-Min helped them thrash Everton 4-0.
Joe Gauci (ADL) was on the bench for Aston Villa in their 2-0 Premier League defeat to Arsenal at Villa Park.
The EFL Championship clash between Middlesbrough and Portsmouth finished in a 2-2 draw at the Riverside Stadium with Socceroo Kusini Yengi (ADL, WSW) coming off the bench in the second half.
The return fixture will make for good viewing later in the season with two other Aussies eligible to play; both Boro’s Riley McGree (ADL, NEW, MCY) and Pompey’s Jacob Farrell (CCM) missed out due to injury while Sam Silvera (CCM, NEW) was ineligible for the contest given he’s currently on loan at Portsmouth from Middlesbrough.
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After seeing their stunning 23-game unbeaten run come to an end last week, Kevin Muscat’s (MVC) Shanghai Port promptly returned to winning ways over the weekend.
Looking to avenge their 3-1 loss at the hands of rivals Shanghai Shenhua, Muscat’s side defeated Tianjin Jinmen Tiger FC 3-0 thanks to hat-trick from Chinese legend Wu Lei to book their spot in the semi-finals of the Chinese FA Cup.
In further good news for Muscat, the former Victory boss has also been named CSL Coach of the Month for a THIRD month in a row after backing up May and June’s awards with the gong in July.
Elsewhere in Asia, John Hutchinson‘s (CCM) Yokohama F.Marinos now have four wins from their last five matches and sit sixth on the J1 League ladder after thrashing Cerezo Osaka 4-0 in their most recent outing.
Thomas Deng’s (MVC) Albirex Niigata and Mitch Duke‘s (CCM, WSW) Machida Zelvia went head-to-head in the latest round of J1 League fixtures with the game ending in a goalless draw.
Currently sat top of the league, Duke couldn’t provide the spark off the bench for his Zelvia side who have now won just once in their last five matches and have Tolgay Arslan’s (MCY) breathing down their necks after they won their sixth league match in a row.
Peter Cklamovski‘s (PER, ADL, MVC) FC Tokyo are now without a win in five matches after they lost 3-0 away to Kyoto Sanga while Melbourne Victory-bound goalkeeper Mitch Langerak (MVC) kept a clean sheet as Nagoya Grampus defeated Shonan Bellmare 1-0.
In Germany, Socceroos Jackson Irvine (MVC) and Connor Metcalfe (MCY) endured a difficult day on their Bundesliga debuts, with FC St Pauli going down 2-0 at home to Heidenheim.
Awer Mabil (ADL) continued his excellent form over in Switzerland, playing 79 minutes and contributing an assist in Grasshoppers’ 3-1 win over Sion.
There wasn’t much joy for our A-Leagues Alumni in the Scottish Premiership with Lewis Miller (CCM) playing the full 90 minutes in Hibernian’s 3-0 defeat to St Johnstone.
Kye Rowles (BRI, CCM) started and Cam Devlin (SYD, WEL, NEW) came off the bench in Hearts’ 3-1 loss to Motherwell while Josh Nisbet (CCM) made his debut as a 70th minute substitute for Ross County in their 6-0 loss to Rangers.
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