When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That prediction proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first call-up to the full England team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true throwback, a story rarely seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team too,” the player said previously.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s football journey has not been a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an option and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my friends at the weekend because I missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth back was something I really required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in London, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against Luton.
Scott made 83 league outings for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at the club, remarked previously.
Less than 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the club, waiting until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the team.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another setback and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign just as impressively for his club, playing in every game to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
