Back when Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team too,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have transformed completely for me and my family.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself here?
Developing in the lower tiers
His football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was a thing I definitely needed.
“Building some confidence by returning and playing island football was huge for me. It was perhaps the most crucial factors that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his early progress after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I played for his local side in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and it was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” Scott said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
