When the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the senior England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a true blast from the past, a journey seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, never mind playing in the top division and playing for England as well,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my family.”
But how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer him an option and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth back was something I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an promising start in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
In just a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make 83 league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Within 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a challenging first season with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
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 matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a formidable partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
