When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his maiden summons to the full Three Lions team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
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 representing England too,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup 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 club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at the weekend because I missed almost four and a half years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth back was a thing I definitely required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in local football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one 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 took the field for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
In just a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive 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 City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season 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 will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Less than three months later, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was shaping up as 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 in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, forming a formidable understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has started this season just as impressively for his club, playing in every game to help them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” the player stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
