Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper throwback, a story rarely seen in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, never mind featuring in the Premier League and representing England as well,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my family.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s path in football has not been a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. Getting that little bit of childhood back was a thing I definitely needed.
“Building some confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. It was perhaps one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance commented at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an promising start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the club while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“It was yet another setback and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable partnership in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” Scott said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
