Back 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 boy.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his maiden summons to the senior Three Lions squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper blast from the past, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the Premier League and representing the national team too,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s path in football has not been a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth again was a thing I really needed.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. It was probably the most crucial things that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by islander their owner – had been tracking his early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled the player. “The first day I joined the youth team, 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, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the club while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’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.
“No doubt, I think he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at the club, remarked previously.
Within 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
Scott experienced a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was almost another obstacle and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, developing a formidable partnership 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 just as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches 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 career,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
