When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
This prediction proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the full England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, let alone featuring in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player said previously.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early 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.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I missed almost several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth back was a thing I really needed.
“To gain some self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial things that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“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,” manager the coach stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen 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 professional game
Championship side Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and arranged a trial in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. From that point a done deal 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 versus Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the league’s best XI and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at the club, remarked previously.
Less than three months later, he joined the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost several months.
“I had a decent run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost 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 U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team under the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, 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 stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, 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 get my chance.”
