Back when Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a journey seldom seen in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, 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 in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Developing in the lower tiers
His path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost four and a half years of doing that. To have that slice of childhood again was something I really required.
“Building some confidence by coming back and playing local football was huge for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side Bristol City – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his development after an promising start in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus Luton.
He made eighty-three league appearances for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Less than three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a challenging debut campaign with the club, waiting until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like almost another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in the host nation, developing a formidable understanding in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side with the national coach.
And he has begun this season just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
