Who is Kamarai Swyer? West Ham prospect profiled after…

Who is Kamarai Swyer? West Ham prospect profiled after making Man United bench and FCSB debut

West Ham United academy midfielder Kamarai Swyer was named on the Hammers’ bench for their 3-1 FA Cup defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford.

The 20-year-old was among the substitutes for David Moyes’ side for Wednesday’s FA Cup fifth round defeat, adding a versatile attacking option with winger Maxwel Cornet out injured and striker Danny Ings ineligible for the trip.

But who is the attack-minded talent who made his Hammers debut earlier this season in Romania. Here is a profile on the midfielder.

The basic info

Kamarai Swyer is a versatile 20-year-old attacking midfielder born in Redbridge, England, who can also play as a winger on both sides, a striker and a central midfielder.

Swyer first joined West Ham at the age of eight and has been in the Hammers’ academy ever since.

The playmaker is a regular for West Ham’s under-21s and earlier this season, made his senior debut as a substitute in the Europa Conference League.

His career to date

First joining West Ham as an eight-year-old, Swyer has impressed throughout the age groups in the Hammers’ academy, signing his first professional contract on his 18th birthday in December 2020.

Swyer made his debut for West Ham’s under-18s in Under-18s Premier League South at the age of 16 in August 2019, starting during a 2-1 victory at home to Swansea City.

Across the Under-18s Premier League and FA Youth Cup during the 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons, Swyer made 29 appearances, scoring seven goals and providing five assists, including a goal and assist during an FA Youth Cup win over Luton Town.

Swyer made his debut in Premier League for the under-23s (now under-21s) in October 2020 during a goalless draw with Blackburn Rovers.

In the 2020/21 campaign, Swyer played 11 times for the under-23 across Premier League 2 and the Papa John’s Trophy, the latter seeing him make his debut in the competition away at League One side Portsmouth.

Since then, his minutes at that level, as well as his contributions on the pitch have continued to grow.

In the 2021/22 campaign, Swyer made 25 appearances for the under-23s across Premier League 2 and the Papa John’s Trophy, scoring five goals and providing four assists. That season also included his first appearance in a competitive senior squad, making the bench for the Europa League home defeat to Dinamo Zagreb shortly after turning 19. He was an unused substitute against the Croatian side.

Swyer’s 2022/23 season so far

Swyer has already matched his PL2 goal tally from last season in this campaign, with five goals in the competition from 17 games this season, including a stunning volley during Monday night’s 3-2 win over Brighton and Hove Albion at Rush Green.

On top of that, Swyer has played once in the Papa John’s Trophy this term, scoring during a 1-0 away win against League Two outfit Walsall, as well as playing in three of West Ham’s four matches in the Premier League International Cup.

Swyer has made West Ham’s first-team squad on four occasions this campaign, the latest of those being on Wednesday night at Old Trafford.

Last August, Swyer was on the bench for the Europa Conference League play-off qualifying second leg trip to Danish side Viborg, but was an unused substitute for the fixture.

His third career first-team squad involvement came in November in Romania, with Swyer making his first-team debut off the bench. Swyer replaced fellow academy forward Divin Mubama for the final 13 minutes of a 3-0 win over FCSB.

Since then, Swyer has made the bench alongside Mubama two more times this season, coming in FA Cup trips to Brentford and Manchester United.

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