Back when the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the senior Three Lions team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my mates at the weekend because I missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. To have that little bit of childhood back was something I definitely needed.
“To gain some self-belief by coming back and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was perhaps the most crucial factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League fixture 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 at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with 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 beginning in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against the Hatters.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at the club, remarked last year.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott experienced a challenging first season with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.
“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“It was yet another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun this season equally as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
