Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his maiden summons to the full Three Lions team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a true blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the top division and representing England too,” Scott said previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
So how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, however, they released him. The Cherries gave 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 the island and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of childhood back was a thing I definitely required.
“Building some self-belief by returning and playing island football was huge for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial factors that led 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 second-half substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I featured for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against Luton.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he will represent England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at the club, stated last year.
Less than three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder experienced a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like almost another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a strong understanding in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the first team with the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
