When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the full England team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, never mind featuring in the top division and playing for England too,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries gave Scott an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on the island and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my friends at the weekend because I missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth again was a thing I really needed.
“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in local football was massive for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important things that got me to this point.”
At the age of 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” manager the coach stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his development after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said the player. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder 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 best XI and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he will represent England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Less than three months after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to make 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 surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“It was almost another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in get himself fit in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season equally as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” Scott said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
