When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This statement proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his maiden call-up to the full England squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England as well,” the player said previously.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Developing in non-league
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he chose to stay on the island and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. To have that slice of youth back was a thing I really needed.
“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that got me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping 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.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his development after an promising beginning in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Within three months later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
Scott endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team under the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving every day, and with luck I impress the national coach and get my chance.”
