Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This prediction proved to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the Premier League and representing England too,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for me and my family.”
So how did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, though, they released him. The Cherries gave him an option and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood again was a thing I really required.
“Building some confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial things that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping 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.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.
Scott made 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the division’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for England and I think he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a difficult first season with the club, having to wait until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost several months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team 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 games as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” Scott said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
