Eray Cömert

2.1.1. Youth and early senior appearances

Cömert joined FC Basel's youth system in 2009 after starting at FC Concordia Basel. He progressed through the ranks, advancing to the U-18 team in 2014, where he won the Swiss U-18 Cup. In the 2015-16 season, he moved up to the U-21 team playing in the Swiss Promotion League. Just a few months later, he was nominated by head coach Urs Fischer as a substitute for Basel's first team match against FC Sion on 30 April 2016, which Basel won to secure the Swiss championship. Cömert subsequently played in each of the last five games of that season, making his Swiss Super League debut on 7 May 2016 in a 3-2 away victory against FC Zürich.

For the 2016-17 season, Cömert trained with the first team but primarily played for the U-21 side to gain more experience. Despite this, he featured in nine friendly matches for the first team and made two 90-minute appearances in the 2016-17 Swiss Cup. At the end of the season, Basel won both the Swiss championship and the Swiss Cup, defeating FC Sion 3-0 in the final, securing a domestic double.

2.1.2. Loan spells (Lugano and Sion)

To further his first-team experience, Cömert was loaned out by Basel. On 8 March 2017, he joined Lugano until the end of the 2016-17 Swiss Super League season. During this period, he played in 12 league matches, each for the full 90 minutes, and helped Lugano avoid relegation.

After returning to Basel, he was loaned out again on 7 July 2017, this time to FC Sion for the 2017-18 Super League season. However, his time at Sion was hampered by injuries. In his very first game, he suffered a shoulder injury, which kept him out for the remainder of that year. Upon his return in the new year, the injury reoccurred after just ten games, forcing him to miss the rest of the season.

2.1.3. Breakthrough and regular starter

Cömert returned to Basel in July 2018. The 2018-19 season started poorly for Basel, with an immediate coaching change from Raphaël Wicky to Marcel Koller. Despite finishing second in the league, 20 points behind champions Young Boys, Basel won the 2018-19 Swiss Cup. The final was held on 19 May 2019 at the Stade de Suisse Wankdorf Bern where Basel defeated Thun 2-1.

Cömert scored his first goal for Basel on 23 August 2018 in the first leg of the 2018-19 UEFA Europa League play-off round at St. Jakob-Park, which proved to be the winning goal in a 3-2 victory against Apollon Limassol. He scored his first Swiss Super League goal on 25 November 2018, an equalizer in the fifth minute of added time, securing a 1-1 draw against FC Luzern at the Swissporarena. This season marked Cömert's breakthrough as a central defender, with him making 31 appearances across all competitions, including 24 in the league, two in the cup, and five in UEFA competitions (one in the UEFA Champions League and four in the UEFA Europa League), scoring two goals in total.

For the 2019-20 season, Marcel Koller remained the first team manager. Basel had a strong start to the season, leading the table after 11 rounds, but then suffered a decline due to three consecutive away defeats, dropping to second place before the winter break. The season was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a postponement of matches from late February to late May. Basel finished the shortened season in third position. In the 2019-20 Swiss Cup, Basel reached the final but were defeated 2-1 by Young Boys. In the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League qualifying phase, Cömert scored his first Champions League goal in the return game of the second qualifying round against PSV Eindhoven, contributing to a 2-1 victory that secured progression. Basel then continued in the 2019-20 UEFA Europa League, winning their group and advancing to the quarter-finals before being knocked out by Shakhtar Donetsk. Cömert made 50 appearances this season, with 33 in the league (scoring two goals), three in the cup, and 14 in UEFA competitions (scoring one goal).

The 2020-21 season saw Ciriaco Sforza appointed as manager. The team experienced a mixed start, with four defeats, one draw, and three victories in their first eight games, but improved to second position by the winter break. However, a poor run of five defeats and only one victory in the first nine games after the new year led to Sforza's dismissal on 6 April 2021, with former assistant manager Patrick Rahmen taking over as interim manager. Basel finished the league as runners-up. In the 2020-21 Swiss Cup, Basel suffered an early exit with a 6-2 defeat against lower-tier side Winterthur. In the shortened 2020-21 UEFA Europa League season, Basel advanced from the second qualifying round but were eliminated in the play-off round by CSKA Sofia after a 3-1 loss. Cömert made 33 appearances this season, including 30 in the league (scoring one goal) and three in the UEFA Europa League.

Patrick Rahmen continued as Basel's head coach for the 2021-22 season. Cömert scored in the second match day, contributing to a 6-1 victory against FC Sion. However, in the return game against Sion, Cömert received a red card in the 88th minute for an emergency foul. This incident marked a turning point in his career at Basel, as he subsequently saw reduced playing time, with coach Patrick Rahmen favoring either veteran Fabian Frei or young defender Nasser Djiga in central defense. Cömert expressed his desire for a transfer abroad in interviews.

On 25 January 2022, FC Basel announced that Cömert had transferred to Spanish club Valencia. Between 2016 and 2017, and again from 2018 to 2022, Cömert played a total of 147 games for Basel, scoring seven goals. Of these, 101 games were in the Swiss Super League (scoring five goals), nine in the Swiss Cup, and 30 in UEFA competitions (Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League, scoring two goals).