Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
That statement proved to be something of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his maiden call-up to the full England squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a true blast from the past, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, let alone featuring in the top division and playing for England as well,” Scott stated 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 in what way did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an option and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and play 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 relax at my home with my friends at weekends because I missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was something I really required.
“Building some self-belief by coming back and taking part in island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial things that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising beginning in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – 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 rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at the club, remarked last year.
Within three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a challenging debut campaign with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was just as affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and it was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in the middle with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season just as strongly for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
