Back when Alex Scott made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey rarely told 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 playing for England as well,” the player said previously.
“It’s been a crazy five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed drastically for me and my family.”
So how did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s football journey has not been a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he chose to stay on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost several years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood back was something I definitely required.
“To gain some self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important 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 was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance stated at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring his development after an impressive beginning in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and versatility. 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 rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was selected in the division’s best XI and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he will represent England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a challenging first season 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 second campaign was just as affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“It was almost another obstacle and the year was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, forming a formidable partnership in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to help them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” Scott said recently.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
