When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first call-up to the full Three Lions team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for me and my loved ones.”
But how did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I really required.
“Building some self-belief by returning and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their league match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager Tony Vance stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.
He made eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he will represent his country and I think he will progress to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Less than 90 days later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder experienced a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.
“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and it was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a strong partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign equally as strongly for his club, playing in all matches to help them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for the game, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
