When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and representing the national team too,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, however, they released him. The Cherries gave him an option and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on the island and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth back was something I definitely required.
“Building some self-belief by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important factors that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s development after an promising beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” said the player. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured for his local side in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
Within a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott made 83 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 adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was selected in the league’s best XI and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a reported fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott 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 pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“It was yet another setback and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, getting better day on day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
