Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the senior England squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, never mind playing in the top division and representing England too,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Instead, he opted to remain on the island and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. To have that little bit of childhood back was a thing I really needed.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
In just 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.
He made 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he will represent his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Less than 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and the year was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, playing in every game to help them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, improving every day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
