When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the full Three Lions squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the top division and playing for the national team as well,” the player stated previously.
“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
But how did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him 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 hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was something I definitely needed.
“To gain some confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the way he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured 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 deal.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against Luton.
Scott went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, remarked last year.
Less than three months after, he joined the Cherries for a understood fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
