When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction proved to be something of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper throwback, a story rarely told in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the top division and representing England as well,” Scott said previously.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s path in football has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at the weekend because I missed almost four and a half years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was a thing I really required.
“To gain some confidence by coming back and playing island football was massive for me. It was probably the most crucial factors that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his development after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.
Scott went on to make 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, remarked previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like yet another setback and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – 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, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season equally as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in every game to help them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
