Back when Alex Scott made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions squad.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a proper blast from the past, a story rarely told in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, never mind featuring in the top division and representing England too,” Scott said previously.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my family.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has not been a typical one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my friends at the weekend because I missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I really needed.
“Building some self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, Scott became 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 Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus Luton.
He went on to make 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s best young player honour, was selected in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Less than 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the team.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“I had a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“It was yet another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year 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 started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has started this season equally as strongly for his club, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
