STEPHEN BRADLEY has revealed that Gavin Bazunu’s younger brother is in the reckoning for a professional deal at Shamrock Rovers.
Todd Bazunu, 16, is currently on the club’s Transition Year programme and regularly trains with the first team and has taken part in warm-ups before matches.
He is the same age now as his elder sibling was when he made the first-team breakthrough at the club in 2018, before he moved to Manchester City.
And, whilst Todd is not in line for first-team involvement in the immediate future with Leon Pohls, Lee Steacy and Tom Leitis ahead of him in the pecking order, Bradley revealed the teenager had made a good impression.
Bradley said: “Todd is in with us a lot. He does schooling and trains with us every morning. He’s in TY.
“He’s one of the young ones who will be up for discussion now in the next month or two regarding pro contracts. He is doing really well, really well.
“Todd is his own man. He is very, very talented.
“He has his own path, he will write his own story, but if he keeps focused and keeps working hard you’ll see him in the near future.”
Being the younger brother of someone who achieved at a high level at a young age could bring its own problems.
But Bradley insisted Todd has never got caught up in fame by association and revealed he came close to quitting football and was put under no pressure to keep playing.
Bradley said: “He doesn’t to be fair. I don’t think they are the type of family who buy into that crap.
“Gavin is Gavin but you speak to his Mam and Dad, they speak about Todd the same way they speak about Gavin, they don’t look at it any differently.
“They have never put pressure on Todd. Todd was at a crossroad 18 months ago if he wanted to play or not and they just left him be.
“He is the one who has come around, he wants it for him not for anything else.
“They don’t think like that and Todd doesn’t either – and obviously Gavin doesn’t – he is working hard at the moment but has real potential.”
Gavin, 22, played six times including in two Europa League matches – for Rovers – before agreeing a move to join City in 2019.
He gained further first-team experience during loan spells with Rochdale and Portsmouth before joining Southampton on a permanent basis in June 2022.
But he lost his place in the team as the club battled unsuccessfully against relegation.
He has been no 1 again this season during their promotion challenge – they play Leeds United in Sunday’s play-off final – but suffered an Achilles injury in April which will sideline him for up to 10 months.
Bazunu won 22 caps since making his debut against Luxembourg in March 2021 aged just 19.