Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This statement proved to be a bit of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, never mind featuring in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” the player stated previously.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, 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 opted to remain on the island and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I missed almost four and a half years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth again was something I really required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and playing 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 came on as a second-half substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an promising beginning in adult football and arranged a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored 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 earning his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Less than three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a reported fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign just as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
