Back when Alex Scott made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This statement proved to be something of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the full England squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true blast from the past, a story rarely seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind featuring in the Premier League and playing for England too,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed drastically for myself and my family.”
But how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of 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 Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired 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 youth back was something I really needed.
“Building some self-belief by coming back and taking part in island football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive start in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
Scott went on to make 83 league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for England and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Within 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started this season just as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
