Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his maiden call-up to the full Three Lions team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true throwback, a story seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England too,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s football journey has not been a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an option and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to remain on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my friends at the weekend because I missed almost four and a half years of doing that. To have that little bit of childhood back was something I definitely needed.
“Building a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important factors that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been tracking his development after an promising start in adult football and arranged a trial in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
In just a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.
He made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Less than three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team with the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
