When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first summons to the senior England team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the Premier League and playing for England too,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But how did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave 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 opted to remain on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood back was a thing I really needed.
“To gain a bit of confidence by coming back and playing local football was huge for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half replacement in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side Bristol City – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled the player. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus the Hatters.
He made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
Scott experienced a difficult first season with the club, waiting until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“I had a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to help them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” the player stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, improving every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
