When Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his first summons to the senior Three Lions team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” the player stated previously.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my family.”
So in what way did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, 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 heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I really required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing local football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” manager the coach commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus Luton.
He made 83 league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he will represent England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s manager at the club, remarked previously.
Less than three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a difficult first season with the club, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the close of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for his club, playing in all matches to help them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” the player stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
