Subway Socceroos forward Nestory Irankunda has signed with EFL Championship side Watford on a five-year contract from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.
The 19-year-old has agreed to join the Hornets in a permanent move reportedly worth €3 million ($5.3 million AUD), with Bayern also inserting a 50% sell-on clause and retaining a buy-back option.
Irankunda arrived at Bayern ahead of the 2024/25 season from Adelaide United, following an impressive two-and-a-half years with the Reds where he set the Isuzu UTE A-League alight with 16 goals in 55 appearances.
However, he did not make a competitive first-team appearance under head coach Vincent Kompany and was subsequently loaned to Swiss Super League outfit Grasshopper Club Zurich in January, in search of regular senior minutes.
He made 17 league starts in 21 appearances for the Swiss club, scoring one goal and garnering three assists.
Following his signing, Watford's Sporting Director Gian Luca Nani said in a club statement:
“Nestory can be a very special player and we believe he can realise his potential here, with us.
“He is exactly the sort of profile Paulo wanted in a winger.
“Nestory was extremely sought-after and thanks to our established scouting network and connections we were able to be ahead of others in the race to sign players of this potential.
"Crucially, we were able to move quickly when opportunities like this arise and that’s been the hallmark of our successful recruitment. The player wanted to come here as he sees the pathway, he has seen how we develop young players at Watford and the vision we have for this club.
"We are absolutely delighted to have signed Nestory and he’s added further to the huge feel-good factor around the training ground.”
Since his Socceroos debut in June 2024, Irankunda has five caps and one goal.
Irankunda follows in the footsteps of former Socceroos who have plied their trades at Vicarage Road, most notably Lucas Neill (2014), Paul Okon (2002) and Richard Johnson (1991 - 2003).
Watford start its new campaign, under recently appointed head coach, Paulo Pezzolano, away to newly-promoted Charlton Athletic on Saturday, 9 August at 9:30pm AEST.