Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first summons to the senior Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a true blast from the past, a story rarely told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he opted to remain on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at the weekend because I missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth back was something I really needed.
“Building some self-belief by coming back and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial factors that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled the player. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus Luton.
Scott made 83 league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the league’s best XI and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Within three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the senior side with the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” Scott stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving every day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
