Shandon Baptiste

Shandon Harkeem Baptiste (born 8 April 1998) is a Grenadian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Brentford and the Grenada national team. He is a product of the Oxford United and Reading academies.

Club Career

Oxford United

A midfielder, Baptiste began his youth career with Reading and after his release, he undertook a scholarship with Oxford United in September 2015. Despite suffering two successive dislocated shoulder injuries during the 2016–17 season, he signed a six-month professional contract in May 2017, which commenced in August 2017. Baptiste made two EFL Trophy appearances during the first half of the 2017–18 season and in December 2017 he signed a new 18-month contract, with the option of a further year. Late in December, he departed the club on loan for the remainder of the season.

Baptiste began the 2018–19 League One season as a regular in the team and scored his first senior goal in a 3–0 EFL Cup second-round victory over Newport County on 28 August 2018. After his sixth appearance of the season, he signed a four-year contract extension. Baptiste missed two months with a third shoulder dislocation and upon his return in January 2019, he suffered a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury during an FA Cup third round match versus Brentford. He made 14 appearances and scored one goal during the 2018–19 season.

Baptiste returned to full training in early August 2019 and was a virtual ever-present for the club through the first half of the 2019–20 season. He was heavily involved in the Us' run to the quarter finals of the EFL Cup, scoring in a 4–0 victory over Premier League club West Ham United in the third round and captaining the team versus Manchester City in the quarter-finals. Baptiste made 27 appearances and scored four goals during the 2019–20 season, before departing the club on 31 January 2020. During 2+1⁄2 seasons as a professional at the Kassam S