Nestory Irankunda has been included in Bayern Munich’s squad to tour South Korea, where the Bundesliga powerhouse are set to play Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham.
The A-Leagues graduate was among the touring party to jet off from Munich to Seoul for a showdown with the Premier League giants on Saturday, August 3.
Bayern will also meet Tottenham again in London on August 11 (AEST).
Irankunda was not the only Australian named by head coach Vincent Kompany as the Belgian legend also called up former Central Coast Mariners goalkeeper Anthony Pavlesic.
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Socceroos forward Irankunda swapped boyhood Isuzu UTE A-League side Adelaide United for Bayern at the end of 2023-24 and the 18-year-old has hit the ground running in Bavaria.
The 18-year-old has scored two goals for the senior side in pre-season, having also found the back of the net for the youth team following his arrival from Australia.
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After the game, Bavarian Football Works – part of SB Nation, heaped praise on Irankunda.
They compared Irankunda with star Canada international Alphonso Davies, who was plucked from MLS via Vancouver Whitecaps in 2018.
“Preseason performances don’t mean much, but Irankunda is one of the few players making a positive impression on this Bayern team so far,” they wrote.
“The Australian forward instantly changed the game once he came on, managing to win 1v1 duels that eluded Bryan Zaragoza for the preceding 60 minutes. He got behind the Duren defenders and was the first player to actually unsettle their low block, which allowed Bayern to gain some momentum and eventually score. Even with an experienced first-teamer like Serge Gnabry on the pitch next to him, Irankunda stood out as the most dangerous player on the pitch.
“Hopefully, Kompany will take him to the Asia Tour and focus on his continued development, given the current situation that Bayern have on the wings. It’s practically unheard of for a youngster from the A-League to make it onto the starting XI of a European giant, but it was also unheard of for a teenager from MLS to do it before Alphonso Davies was discovered by Bayern.
“Maybe lightning can strike twice.”
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