Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That statement proved to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England too,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have transformed completely for myself and my family.”
So how did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in the lower tiers
His football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I missed almost several years of doing that. To have that slice of childhood back was a thing I really needed.
“Building some confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against Luton.
He made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth 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 earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year 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’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Within 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the team.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, developing a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun this season just as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” Scott said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
