Irankunda's next move could make him Australia's most expensive footballer ever — and it's to Ronaldo's old club
Sporting Lisbon are chasing Nestory Irankunda in a deal that would break Australia's transfer record, capping a fortnight of World Cup breakouts cashing in.
Nestory Irankunda is one deal away from becoming the most expensive Australian footballer in history.
Sporting Lisbon — the club where Cristiano Ronaldo turned professional — are chasing the 20-year-old, fresh off a World Cup that put every scout in Europe on notice.
According to Portuguese outlet Record, Sporting have made an offer totalling €20 million ($32.5 million) to prise Irankunda from Championship side Watford, with the Lisbon club reportedly expecting to close the deal within days.
That figure would clear the current Australian record. Harry Souttar's 2023 move from Stoke to Leicester, at around €17 million, has stood as the benchmark. Sporting's offer walks straight past it.
Irankunda arrived at the tournament as a talent and left it as a name. He became the youngest Socceroo to score at a World Cup, striking in Australia's only win — the 2-0 group-stage defeat of Turkey — as the side reached the Round of 32.
Watford signed him from Bayern Munich for about €3 million just last summer. A year later they're fielding offers many times that. The club have already rejected a €10 million bid from newly-promoted Hull City, and Everton, Bayer Leverkusen, Fiorentina and West Ham have all been linked.
Sporting would be Irankunda's third permanent move in three years. Adelaide United to Bayern in 2024, a record A-League fee. A loan at Grasshopper Zurich. Bayern to Watford last season. Now, potentially, the Portuguese champions and the Champions League.
He is not the only Socceroo turning a good three weeks in America into a career jump.
Goalkeeper Patrick Beach, a surprise starter who made eight saves against Turkey — a Socceroos record at a World Cup — has signed a five-year deal with newly-promoted Ligue 1 side Troyes, moving from Melbourne City. Both clubs sit under the City Football Group umbrella.
Midfielder Cammy Devlin has joined Rangers on a free after his Hearts contract expired. Paul Okon-Engstler is reportedly close to Bundesliga club Köln.
The pattern is familiar, and it favours the players. A national team overperforms, the world watches, and the release clauses start ringing.
For Irankunda, the timing could hardly be sharper. Sporting finished runners-up in the Primeira Liga and enter the Champions League league phase this season. Break into that first team, and a kid from Adelaide will be testing himself against the best clubs on the continent — at the same address where Ronaldo started.
The record is there for the breaking. Watford just have to say yes.