Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction proved to be something of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his maiden summons to the senior Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper throwback, a journey rarely told in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind featuring in the top division and representing the national team as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. Getting that little bit of childhood again was something I really required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in 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 made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in adult football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I played 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 certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
Scott made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he will represent England and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Less than 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and it was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in get himself fit in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season just as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
