Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This statement proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions team.
His ascent 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? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the Premier League and playing for the national team too,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my family.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. To have that slice of childhood back was something I really needed.
“Building some self-belief by returning and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his development after an impressive beginning in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being used 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.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within three months after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“It was yet another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, developing a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” Scott said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
