Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be a bit of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden summons to the senior England squad.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a story rarely told in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind playing in the top division and playing for England as well,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for me and my loved ones.”
But how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth back was something I definitely needed.
“Building a bit of confidence by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, developing a formidable partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
