When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper blast from the past, a journey rarely told in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, let alone featuring in the Premier League and playing for the national team too,” the player stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my family.”
But how did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s football journey has not been a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they released him. Bournemouth gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth back was something I definitely needed.
“Building some confidence by coming back and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became 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 had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his early progress after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in London, travelled back and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. It was almost 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.
He went on to make 83 league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, remarked previously.
Less than three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
Scott experienced a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being in and out of the team.
His second campaign was just as affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost several months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in the middle with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, improving day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
