When Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his first call-up to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing the national team too,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my family.”
So how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s 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 train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed almost several years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I definitely required.
“Building some confidence by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s development after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus Luton.
Scott made 83 league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he will represent his country and I think he will progress to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Less than 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a challenging debut campaign with the club, waiting until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign equally as strongly for his club, featuring 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,” Scott said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
