Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This statement proved to be something of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the full England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
But how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he opted to remain on the island and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my friends 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 really needed.
“Building some self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the club while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his skill 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 City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he will represent England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Within 90 days after, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” Scott said recently.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
