Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the full England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely told in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, let alone playing in the top division and representing the national team too,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a crazy five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for myself and my family.”
So how did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has not been a conventional one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer him an option and he remained with them 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 hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of childhood again was a thing I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“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 Tony Vance commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott went on to make 83 league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Within 90 days after, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ 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 excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has started this season equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
