When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the full England team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind playing in the top division and playing for England as well,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he chose to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my friends at weekends because I had missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood back was a thing I definitely needed.
“To gain some confidence by returning and playing local 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 became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and arranged a trial in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
In just a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Within 90 days later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost four months.
“I had a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was turning out to be 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 succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in the middle with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started this season equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
