Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his maiden summons to the full England squad.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and representing England as well,” the player stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an option and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he chose to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. To have that slice of youth back was something I really required.
“Building some confidence by coming back and taking part in island football was massive 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 youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in London, returned home and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against Luton.
Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his skill to drive 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 honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s boss at the club, stated last year.
Within 90 days later, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was almost another setback and it 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 managed to get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season equally as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” Scott said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying the game, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
