Sil Swinkels
Dutch footballer (born 2004)
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Sil Swinkels (born 6 January 2004) is a Dutch footballer who currently plays as a centre-back or left-back for Chesterfield, on loan from Premier League club Aston Villa. Swinkels is a product of the Aston Villa and Vitesse Arnhem academies and has played for the Netherlands internationally at youth levels up to under-18. Swinkels played on loan for EFL League One side Bristol Rovers in 2025, making his senior league debut and appearing fourteen times.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Sil Laurentius Swinkels[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 6 January 2004 | ||
| Place of birth | Sint-Oedenrode, Netherlands | ||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)[2] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team |
Chesterfield (on loan from Aston Villa) | ||
| Number | 26 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| RKSV Rhode | |||
| Helmond Sport | |||
| Brabant United | |||
| 2017–2020 | Vitesse Arnhem | ||
| 2020–2021 | Aston Villa | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021– | Aston Villa | 0 | (0) |
| 2025 | → Bristol Rovers (loan) | 14 | (2) |
| 2025–2026 | → Exeter City (loan) | 7 | (0) |
| 2026– | → Chesterfield (loan) | 17 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 2019–2020 | Netherlands U15 | 2 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | Netherlands U18 | 4 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 7 April 2026 (UTC) | |||
Early life
Swinkels was born in Sint-Oedenrode in the south of the Netherlands in 2004.[3]
Club career
Youth career
Having played youth football for Dutch sides RKSV Rhode, Helmond Sport, Brabant United and Vitesse Arnhem, he joined Aston Villa's academy in summer 2020.[3][4]
Swinkels made an unexpected first team debut for Aston Villa when, due to a COVID-19 outbreak, Villa were forced to play an inexperienced squad in an FA Cup third-round tie against Liverpool on 8 January 2021.[5]
On 24 May 2021, Swinkels was part of the Aston Villa U18s team that won the FA Youth Cup, beating Liverpool U18s 2–1 in the final.[6] On 10 August 2021, he signed his first professional contract with Aston Villa.[7]
In March 2023, Swinkels suffered a torn ACL in a Premier League 2 match against Southampton B which he confirmed would result in an extended period on the sidelines.[8] Swinkels eventually returned to football on 8 April 2024, in a 4–0 defeat for Villa U21s against Chelsea U21s.[9] After coming back from injury and playing a part in Aston Villa U21s reaching the Premier League 2 play-offs and winning the Birmingham Senior Cup, on 17 May 2024, Swinkels signed a contract extension with Aston Villa.[10]
Senior career
On 24 September 2024, Swinkels made his first appearance for the senior Aston Villa team for the first time since 2021 during a 2–1 away victory against Wycombe Wanderers in the EFL Cup.[11] Swinkels was a regular substitute option for Villa in the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League and 2024-25 Premier League over the first half of the season but did not appear.[12]
On 28 November 2024, Swinkels signed another contract extension with Aston Villa.[13]
On 3 February 2025, Swinkels signed for EFL League One club Bristol Rovers on loan until the end of the season.[14] Swinkels made his English Football League debut on 11 February 2025, scoring a 91st minute equaliser in a match against Stockport County.[15]
On 17 July 2025, Swinkels returned to League One, joining Exeter City on a season-long loan deal.[16]
On 4 January 2026, Swinkels was recalled from his loan at Exeter, and immediately loaned out to EFL League Two club Chesterfield for the rest of the season.[17] Swinkels made his Chesterfield debut only one hour after his transfer was announced, playing 90 minutes in a 2–2 draw against Milton Keynes Dons.[18]
International career
Swinkels played for Netherlands at the under-15 level. On 6 September 2021, Swinkels made his debut for Netherlands U18 in a 5–0 friendly victory over Italy.[19] He scored his first goal at youth international level for Netherlands U18s, on 28 March 2022, in a 4–1 away victory over Germany.[20]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 6 April 2026
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Aston Villa | 2020–21[21] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2021–22[22] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4[a] | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23[23] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2023–24[24] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2024–25[25] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2025–26[26] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| Bristol Rovers (loan) | 2024–25[25] | League One | 14 | 2 | – | – | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 | ||
| Exeter City (loan) | 2025–26[26] | League One | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| Chesterfield (loan) | 2025–26[26] | League Two | 17 | 0 | – | – | – | 17 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 36 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 48 | 2 | ||
- Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy