Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the senior England squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, let alone playing in the top division and playing for England as well,” Scott stated previously.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s path in football 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, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he chose to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was something I definitely needed.
“To gain some confidence by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s development after an promising start in adult football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
Scott made 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he will represent England and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Within three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a difficult first season with the club, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the team.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, developing a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” the player stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, getting better every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
