When Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his first summons to the full England team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper throwback, a story rarely seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and playing for the national team as well,” 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.”
So how did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed almost four and a half years of that experience. To have that slice of youth again was something I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing island football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that led me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” manager the coach commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against the Hatters.
He made eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was selected in the league’s best XI and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like almost another obstacle 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 U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side with the national coach.
And he has started this season just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
