Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
That prediction proved to be something of an understatement.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the senior England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a journey seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, let alone playing in the top division and representing the national team as well,” Scott stated previously.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my family.”
So how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that slice of youth back was something I really needed.
“Building some confidence by coming back and taking part in island football was massive for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’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 his country and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Within 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the team.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“I had a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the senior side with the national coach.
And he has begun this season just as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” Scott said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
