When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his first call-up to the full Three Lions squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But how did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in the lower tiers
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my friends at weekends because I missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. Getting that slice of youth again was something I definitely needed.
“To gain some confidence by coming back and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half replacement in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in London, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
He went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – 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 rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder 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 Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Less than three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another setback and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for his club, playing in every game to help them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and get my chance.”
