When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the senior Three Lions team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper throwback, a story seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England too,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer him an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at weekends because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth back was something I definitely required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important factors that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in adult football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against Luton.
He went on to make 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Within three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
Scott endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game 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 stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
