Back when Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the senior England team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper blast from the past, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England as well,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have transformed completely for me and my family.”
So how did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early each 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 released him. Bournemouth gave Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“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 friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. Getting that slice of childhood back was something I definitely needed.
“To gain some confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was massive for me. It was perhaps 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 substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented 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.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s development after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Within three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder experienced a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” the player stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
