Irankunda and Circati Find Different Routes to Progress at Sporting and Benfica

Three months into their first seasons in Portugal, Nestory Irankunda and Alessandro Circati have made progress along different tracks. Irankunda has turned early substitute appearances into regular starts at Sporting, while Circati has logged more minutes at Benfica but remains behind the club’s established centre-back pairing. Both moves carry significant expectations: Sporting paid €15 million for the winger from Watford, and Benfica brought Circati from Parma for €18 million.

The pair are the first Australians to join either Lisbon club. Their World Cup performances helped put them on the radar, but their early seasons show how much the next step depends on fitting into teams with deep squads and distinct demands on the ball.

Irankunda turns opportunity into a run of starts

Sporting’s crowded wide positions made Irankunda’s initial foothold difficult. Geny Catamo, Luís Guilherme, Flávio Gonçalves, Rodrigo Zalazar and Jesse Derry were all competing for places in the same areas. Until mid-September, Irankunda’s role was mostly limited to brief cameos: he played between 10 and 23 minutes in four matches and remained on the bench for three others.

A change in Sporting’s shape opened a more productive stretch. After poor results, coach Rui Borges moved the team from a 4-2-3-1 to a 4-3-3 following the October international break. Irankunda responded with strong performances in difficult away matches against Braga in the league and Lens in the Champions League, assisting Luis Suárez in both wins.

He also won a penalty early in Sporting’s next match, against LASK Linz. The team lost that Champions League fixture, then suffered a home defeat to Académico da Viseu. Those results cost Borges his job, and Paulo Fonseca took charge a week later. For Irankunda, the coaching change brought a fresh test just as he had begun to establish himself.

There was reason to wonder whether the new manager’s approach would suit him. Fonseca was expected to favour patient possession over the rapid forward transitions that had helped Irankunda thrive under Borges. But the winger started Fonseca’s first match, his seventh start in Sporting’s last eight games, and came close to scoring twice against Moreirense. One powerful shot was cleared off the line; another went in but was ruled out for an offside margin of eight centimetres.

His own account suggests a player who knows there’s more to adapt to. “I’m working hard to be a starter for Sporting,” Irankunda said after the LASK Linz game. “I’m happy to be in the starting eleven. I’m working hard for this to happen. I’ve been playing well, but I think I can do better.” He also described the shift from English football, with its greater aggression and longer balls, as a “big difference,” while making clear he was happy at Sporting.

The early signs are encouraging because his contribution extends beyond raw speed. Irankunda has shown useful tactical awareness and a willingness to work, and he has adjusted to a new country and changing systems. His first Sporting goal is still to come, but consecutive chances and sustained starts have made that a more immediate prospect than it looked during his first weeks in Lisbon. PortuGOAL rates his start 7/10.

Circati is learning Benfica’s demands in possession

Circati’s route into Benfica’s first team is narrower. Tomás Araújo and Clément Lenglet are Marco Silva’s preferred centre-back pairing, and both offer qualities the manager values when Benfica builds attacks. Circati has played 582 minutes this season, slightly more than Irankunda’s 568, but most of his appearances have come in less consequential matches.

Benfica’s schedule across four competitions should create openings, especially with Araújo and Lenglet having uneven injury records. Circati has not disappointed when selected. His height and strength were seen by many supporters as an answer to Benfica’s vulnerability against crosses and set pieces. Those traits give him a distinct profile, but they haven’t yet been enough to displace two defenders who currently provide greater passing fluency and cohesion.

The gap is clearest when Benfica has the ball. Circati tends to play safe, short passes to a defensive partner or a midfielder dropping back, rather than taking responsibility for more progressive distribution. Silva has identified that part of his game as an area for development. Benfica’s centre-backs often have to make repeated decisions high up the pitch, a different assignment from defending deeper or playing for the national team.

Silva described the adjustment as a process ahead of Benfica’s match against Estrela da Amadora. “Circati has been evolving, adapting, and this takes time,” he said, adding that the 23-year-old is currently more comfortable without the ball. Silva pointed to the difference between Benfica and Circati’s previous settings: the Lisbon side spends much of its time attacking in the opposition half, where the defender must make decisions in possession throughout a match.

“This is all new to him and he’s been taking the right steps. We’re happy with him,” Silva said. That assessment fits a player who has arrived with experience in Italy’s Serie A and an important role for Australia, but who still needs to grow into Benfica’s particular demands. His transfer fee is substantial for a Portuguese club, and at 23 he has time to develop into a central figure. The immediate question is whether he can add more initiative in possession while keeping the defensive attributes that made him an attractive signing.

Circati’s early rating from PortuGOAL is 6.5/10: a steady start, with limited exposure to the most demanding tests and some confidence still to build. A regular place later in the season is plausible. His profile differs from Araújo’s and Lenglet’s, which could make him a useful complement as opportunities arise. For now, Sporting’s winger is ahead in the race for regular starts, while Benfica’s defender is being prepared for a role that asks him to do more than defend.