When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his maiden summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.
Instead, he opted to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost four and a half years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood again was a thing I really needed.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing local football was massive for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an impressive start in men’s football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC 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.”
In just 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against the Hatters.
He went on to make 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age 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 moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for England and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Less than three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost four 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 obstacle and the year was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” 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 national coach and earn an opportunity.”
