When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be something of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the senior England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper throwback, a story rarely told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind featuring in the top division and playing for England as well,” the player said previously.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
His football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries gave Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I missed almost four and a half years of doing that. To have that little bit of youth back was a thing I definitely required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s development after an promising beginning in adult football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by 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.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at the club, stated last year.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“It was almost another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, forming a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season equally as impressively for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
