When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the full England squad.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and representing the national team too,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my family.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to remain on the island and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. To have that slice of youth again was something I definitely needed.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that led me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager made history as 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 side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring his development after an promising beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at the club, remarked last year.
Within 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
The midfielder experienced a difficult first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“It was almost another setback and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, getting better every day, and with luck I impress the national coach and get my chance.”
