When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden summons to the senior England team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a true throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing England too,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for myself and my family.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, though, they released him. Bournemouth gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he opted to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that slice of childhood again was something I definitely needed.
“Building some confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their league match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.
Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Within three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult 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 finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like almost another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, forming a strong understanding in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to help them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, getting better day on day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
