When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “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 midfielder has earned his first call-up to the full England squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and playing for England too,” the player said previously.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, 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 becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. To have that little bit of childhood back was something I really required.
“To gain some confidence by coming back and playing island football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
In just a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus Luton.
He went on to make 83 league outings for the Robins while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player award, was selected in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Less than three months after, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott experienced a challenging debut campaign with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost several months.
“I had a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like almost another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, forming a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign just as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
