When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the senior England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a true blast from the past, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they released him. The Cherries gave Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of childhood again was something I really needed.
“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was probably the most crucial factors that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been monitoring his development after an impressive beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek 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 netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at the club, remarked previously.
Less than 90 days later, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
Scott experienced a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the team.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“It was almost another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started this season just as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
