Back when Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a true throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and playing for England too,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in non-league
His football journey has not been a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, 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 chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth again was a thing I really needed.
“Building a bit of confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was probably the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, Scott became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager Tony Vance stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his development after an promising start in adult football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Less than 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, waiting until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and it was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” the player stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
