Zimbabwe-born defender Tivonge Rushesha has signed his first professional deal at Swansea City.

The 17 year-old is a product of the Welsh club’s academy and made his senior debut in the Carabao Cup this past August 2019.

Rushesha has featured for Wales at Under-17 level and played in the Uefa Under 17 qualifiers.

Although he has represented Wales at age-group level he is still eligible to play for the Warriors. He was in fact drafted in 2021 Afcon qualifiers team but the Zimbabwe Football Association was not able to secure his passport on time.

At the time of the call-up Rushesha said:

“I feel privileged to be in such a position… I visit Zimbabwe very often, on average every two years, because that’s where I was born, and it’s home.”

Rushesha has signed the professional contract with Swansea City, which will keep him at the club until the summer of 2022.

The young defender, whose existing deal was due to expire at the end of the season, has put pen to paper on his first pro deal with the Swans.

Zimbabwean-born Rushesha has made great strides with Swansea since joining the academy at under-12 level.

After signing a two-year scholarship in the summer of 2018, the full-back made 19 appearances for the under-18s last season, while he was also part of the under-19s side that lifted the FAW Youth Cup for a record-breaking 10th consecutive year.

Rushesha also broke into the under-23s squad under Gary Richards and Cameron Toshack – making five appearances during the development side’s run to the Premier League Cup semi-finals.

A member of Wales’ under-19s squad, the 17-year-old has further cemented his place in the Swans’ under-23s side this season – playing 12 times in all competitions – while he also made his first-team debut as a substitute in August’s Carabao Cup victory over Cambridge United at the Liberty.