When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the full Three Lions team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper throwback, a story rarely told in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, let alone featuring in the Premier League and representing England too,” the player said previously.
“It’s been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have changed completely for me and my family.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to remain on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost four and a half years of that experience. Getting that slice of childhood back was something I definitely needed.
“Building a bit of confidence by returning and playing island football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that led me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an impressive start in men’s football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
Within a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Within three months later, he joined Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being in and out of the team.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first half.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to help them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying the game, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
