Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for 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 proved to be something of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a true throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and playing for England too,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, though, they released him. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost four and a half years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood back was a thing I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing island football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Within three months later, he joined Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the team.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like yet another obstacle 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 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, developing a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season equally as strongly for his club, featuring in all matches to guide them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” the player stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
