Andy Irving - The Jambo in Austria
In January 2019 Andy Irving sat on the bench at Ayr United’s Somerset Park an unused sub during a loan spell with Falkirk. One year on, he walked out at an eerily empty Hampden Park to start for boyhood club Heart of Midlothian in the COVID delayed 2020 Scottish Cup final with Celtic. Fast forward another 12 months, in the Bavarian capital of Munich, Irving was now bossing the midfield for third tier Türkgücü Munich. By early 2022 Türkgücü had filed for insolvency and the DFB (German FA) deducted all their points declaring their entire season nullified. But the darkest of chapters in the club’s history opened the door for Andy Irving to take a leap and in July 2022 the 22-year-old joined Austrian Bundesliga side Austria Klagenfurt.
“Football is a mad game”, Andy perfectly summarised, “It’s been quite a journey but I’m at a good place now”. Even as we sat on the phone to discuss his career there was a spanner in the works. Harsh weather conditions in Austria forced Klagenfurt to flee south across the Slovenian border for a brief training camp to avoid practising on astroturf pitches. Klagenfurt were gearing up to face fellow top six hopefuls Wolfsberger AC in three days’ time having just faced Austria Wien.
“It’s not that far just a couple hours drive from Austria down to where we are in Slovenia” Andy informed me, before elaborating that the scenic Slovenian Alps are visible from the hotel room, “You’ve got the Alps in the distance, there’s Lake Wörther See which is massive, the water is insane in the summer. I have to say it’s a beautiful place to live”.
The awe inspiring Alps and stunning views across famous lake Wörther See, Andy painted a convincing picture of Austrian life, but I couldn’t help but ask. Why Austria, and how did he get there?
“I’d always wanted to play abroad at some point in my career. I thought while I was young that was maybe the best opportunity to do so. The agents I have are based in Germany and most of their contacts are in Europe”.
Growing up Andy lived mere minutes away from former Edinburgh derby rival Josh Doig, with the Edinburgh pair even attending the same primary school, this relationship gave him an insight into how a move abroad may materialise. “His dad’s my dad’s best pal so I’ve known Doigy since I was a wee kid. I always hear how he’s getting on and how he’s finding it”.
And if the endorsement of absorbing some European culture from one highly promising left back wasn’t enough Andy had another shoulder to lean on in one of his old Tynecastle teammates. “I played with Aaron Hickey at Hearts who was one of my good pals. I spoke away to him and got info from him about how he enjoyed it and what he thought of living abroad”.
Andy had his foot in the European door and was loving life in the Bavarian capital during his first few months. Playing their home games at the Munich Olympiastadion things were flowing on the field for Türkgücü Munich with Andy touching on their derby days with 1860 as particularly fruitful experiences on the season. “With Türkgücü and 1860 there is a rivalry there just not as big [compared to 1860 v Bayern], but it was actually quite good because we played them twice, won one and drew one so it was a pretty good return in that sense”.
But Andy’s Bavarian bubble soon burst when rumours about Türkgücü’s financial struggles were soon confirmed. “It was about January [2022] and we were in training camp for about a week during the winter break and Kicker had a couple of articles talking about financial issues. To be fair we all thought it was rumours at that point and there was nothing really in it. Then it got to the end of the month in January, and we had a meeting and basically it was all true. The owner, and president of the club, was pulling out and he was the main source”.
If it weren’t a complex enough situation for a young lad adjusting to life alone in a foreign country, all while learning a second language, the unprecedented collapse of his employers might have broken a more vulnerable, less ambitious individual. “To be fair there’s no getting away from it. An absolute shambles and not a very nice environment but we were kept in the light. From December/January to mid-March it became very sour and difficult to be honest. I was out there alone it was tough”.
Yet Andy’s on field grit and determination was echoed by his attitude and commitment off it as he continued to work on both his footballing abilities and his German linguistic skills. “I never had German at school or that so it was completely new to me. I had a German teacher and I became really good pals with her and I keep in touch with her until this day. I was definitely keen. I didn’t want to go over and not put any effort in to learn the language or that so I feel like I’ve learned it pretty well. It was a bit different coming to Austria because the dialect is totally different, but I’ve picked it up now and I’ve got a good understanding of it”.
Naturally the connection between Germany and Austria was a bridge that Andy could cross to revive his career after the collapse of his Munich employers. With a similar style of play between the European nations Andy admitted that Klagenfurt had watched him in Munich and had faith in his ability to take the step up.
A small investigation into the ongoings of the Austrian Bundesliga and it’s plain and simple why Andy is playing with a smile on his face. Aside from the odd exception he’s been trusted with penalty duties, so far helping him bag three goals (his most to date), while he has also contributed in the goal department for his teammates too. “I’ve scored three goals and six assists or something. It’s been a good season; we’ve been playing really well”.
UEFA’s coefficients suggest that the Scottish Premiership (ranked 9th) is a marginal upgrade on the Austrian Bundesliga (10th) but with first-hand experience in each it felt right to quiz Andy on the major comparisons and the gulf in standard between the nation’s elite footballing divisions.
“If you look at the league it’s the exact same setup, 12 teams, a top six, bottom six and five European places places up for grabs. I think in that sense they’re very similar and I would even say, obviously with Celtic and Rangers you have the two big dogs, you’ve got Hearts, Hibs, Aberdeen who are all big clubs as well. You’ve got the same setup in Austria with Red Bull Salzburg and Sturm Graz two big ones, Rapid Wien are a really big club, Austria Wien too, so it is similar but I think the style of football is different. In Austria it’s very open. It’s tactical, it’s open and I’d say it’s very attacking but physical as well and maybe the speed of the game. It’s hard to compare, I dunno I’d say they’re on a similar level. The football played is just slightly different. There’s a lot more chances, teams attack and take risks. I’m not saying that doesn’t happen in Scotland but maybe a little more here. I think that probably gets the best out of me and probably suits me the way I play as well”.
Andy is thriving under Klagenfurt boss Peter Pacult but he insists that the team as a whole are clicking and there is some serious talent in the camp. 32-year-old Austrian forward Markus Pink currently leads the league with 16 goals, two Klagenfurt members are tied in sixth for league assists, while Andy himself trails only 12 others across the division in assists. Having played in a Scottish Cup final alongside Scotland internationalists with English Premier League experience such as Craig Gordon, Christophe Berra and Steven Naismith I wondered how the Klagenfurt roster compared to his former Jambos teammates.
“There’s a lot of good players, really good players in the team. I played with a lot of really good players at Hearts as well. You’ve got experienced players like Steven Naismith, Christophe Berra. You’ve got John Souttar. At Klagenfurt you’ve got Thorsten Mahrer in defence. Christopher Wernitznig, Pinky. We’ve got loads of good players. Having said that there’s some boys in the team who are about 30+ who have played their whole career in the Austrian Bundesliga and I’m honestly surprised some of them haven’t played at a higher level”.
Klagenfurt are in the hunt for European football this season and for a second campaign running look to finish in the top half of Austria’s split. Although Andy has flourished in a more open football landscape his 13 years at Hearts will forever hold a place in his own. “I’d been at Hearts for 13 years by the time I left, spent all my time through the academy, coming up into the first team and that was my dream to do that. I supported Hearts growing up and I still support them now. My whole family are Hearts fans and it truly was my dream come true. Obviously I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss being in Edinburgh, being with my family, seeing them every single day. I just try to focus on the football. I speak to my mum, dad, girlfriend, brother, pals, extended family all the time. But you’re busy as well, playing games, travelling and that”.
Keeping his mind entirely on the pitch has been a little easier given he’s out there alone. “I think in a way you can say you have less distractions when you’re away. You’re able to focus completely on the football. I’m getting to an age where I’m fully developed, had a lot of experience, and played a lot of games. I had the same when I was at Hearts, we had great facilities, great people at the club and it was easy to develop your game and I feel like I’ve continued to do that, it’s allowed me to kick on. I take the time to watch my games back and review them to see what I can improve on and try to implement those things. It’s definitely a good place to be to develop your game, playing abroad”.
Andy has been able to focus on his game without the welcome distractions of friends and family at home, or the dire behind the scenes issues he endured in Munich, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t delighted to host visitors. Parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles are all scheduled to head across later this season, this coming after Andy already entertained a squad of nine mates at the end of last year. His girlfriend spent three months with him in the summer as he settled into his new digs.
Performing well in a competitive league and a secure environment has allowed Andy to settle with ease in south Austria and so far, two years on from his one-way ticket out of Edinburgh, he’s adapted to those initial culture shocks. “When you stay in a hotel the night before a game you go for breakfast and it’s no typical Scottish breakfast, even like a healthy Scottish breakfast. People are having like peppers, red and green peppers in the morning with like cucumber I found that weird at like eight in the morning”.
A slightly less traditional breakfast from what he’d grown accustomed to in Edinburgh seemed to be the only black mark on his European journey so far. Andy has established himself as a regular in an Austria Klagenfurt side that look to be going places and like so many other Scots abroad his development has soared since leaving his homeland. Klagenfurt are eight points off third place which would clinch a Europa League spot while they are just three points from fourth which would allow them to compete in the Europa Conference League. With his former side soaring in third back here at home an Andy Irving return to Tynecastle might be on the cards next season after all.
Comments
Post a Comment