When Alex Scott made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
That prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my family.”
But how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has not been a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system starting at 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.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he chose to remain on the island and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at the weekend because I missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood back was something I definitely needed.
“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back 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.”
At the age of 16, Scott made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an promising beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the first team, 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 netted a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Within three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost several months.
“I had a decent run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“It was yet another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, forming a formidable partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season just as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
