🔗 Share this article

When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”

This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.

Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his first call-up to the full England squad.

His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a true throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern era.

Next stop? The World Cup?

“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, let alone featuring in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” Scott stated previously.

“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my family.”

So how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?

Learning in non-league

His path in football has not been a conventional one.

He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.

Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him 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 chose to remain on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.

“My form had dipped and flying over every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.

“All I desired to relax at my home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost several years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth again was a thing I really needed.

“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in local football was massive for me. It was probably the most crucial things that led me where I am today.”

When he was just 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.

“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated at the time.

“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the way he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”

Making a comeback to the pro ranks

Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and arranged a trial in late 2019.

“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total shock.

“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a deal.”

Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against Luton.

He made 83 league outings for the club while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.

With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.

“No doubt, I think he will represent his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at the club, remarked last year.

Within three months later, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.

Securing his major transfer

Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the team.

His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.

“I had quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.

“It was almost another setback and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first five months.”

But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.

He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in the host nation, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.

And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to guide them to the top five in the table.

“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” Scott said recently.

“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”