When Alex Scott made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This statement proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first call-up to the senior Three Lions team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely told in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team as well,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for me and my family.”
So in what way did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost several years of doing that. To have that little bit of childhood again was something I really needed.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial things that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager Tony Vance commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled the player. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the club while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was selected in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Less than 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
Scott endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, waiting until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was quite a good run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“It was almost another setback and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in get himself fit in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
