Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the senior Three Lions team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper throwback, a story rarely seen in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind featuring in the Premier League and playing for England too,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. To have that little bit of childhood back was a thing I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and playing island football was huge for me. That proved to be probably 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 the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring his development after an promising beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” said the player. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
In just 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make eighty-three league outings for the club while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was voted 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 game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Within 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being in and out of the team.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“It was almost another obstacle and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in get himself fit in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in the host nation, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season just as strongly for his club, playing in every game to help them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
