Back when Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the senior England team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper throwback, a story rarely told in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing the national team too,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But how did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that little bit of youth again was something I definitely needed.
“Building a bit of confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his development after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said Scott. “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 featured for his local side in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league outings for the Robins while in his teens, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s young player of the season award, was selected in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“It was yet another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and get my chance.”
