He’s the Socceroos’ X-factor. But there’s one thing about Irankunda his teammates can’t cop

Oakland: Jackson Irvine is a self-declared “massive fan” of Socceroos teammate Nestory Irankunda, in just about every way. The only thing about him that Irvine can’t quite embrace, however, is his obsession with Michael Jackson.

As the team’s resident musical connoisseur and moral compass, Irvine watched on with bemusement from Germany when Irankunda scored against Curacao earlier this year, had a pre-planted sequinned glove thrown to him by a photographer near the corner flag, and rolled out one of Jackson’s trademark dance moves in front of the cameras as his goal celebration.

“It’s a weird generational thing. It’s a huge part of Michael Jackson that just seems to not have happened any more,” Irvine laughed.

“The guy made some bangers, for sure. Would I want to be openly celebrating him? Probably not. I think I’m maybe showing my age there a little bit. But every time I hear Michael Jackson come on in the dressing room, I just think ... did I dream all that?”

Everything else about Irankunda, Irvine can get on board with. As a character, he loves him. As a player, he does things with the ball that Irvine says he’s never seen before. He’s in awe of his sheer pace and power.

Irankunda, 20, is Australia’s most dynamic attacking player. But is he ready to start at the World Cup? And is that even the best thing for the Socceroos?

These are questions head coach Tony Popovic and his staff are chewing over ahead of Sunday’s (2pm AEST) opener against Turkey in Vancouver.

The concern is that, for a game which will require immense tactical discipline and emotional control, Irankunda might not be the best fit to start. His decision to kick the ball into Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka’s private parts while he was lying stomach-down on the ground earned him a yellow card, and sparked an all-in scuffle between the teams – no hanging offence, but the sort of incident the Socceroos would rather not have happened during a proper World Cup match.

Irankunda is not a liability in these areas. In fact, his teammates and coaches all say he is improving, and his defensive workrate was a standout aspect of his performance against the Swiss. He won possession seven times in the 1-1 draw, more than double his best previous effort for the Socceroos. But there are perhaps other players who are better options for a specific situation like this.

“Playing for Australia at the World Cup and against the top nations in the world, the first thing you’ve got to do is be able to defend and run and do it for 90 minutes. And it’s hard. It’s really, really hard,” Irvine said.

“It’s