Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
This statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the full England squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true throwback, a story rarely told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the top division and representing England as well,” the player stated previously.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Developing in non-league
His football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his island 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 gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he opted to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. Getting that slice of childhood back was a thing I definitely needed.
“Building a bit of confidence by returning and playing local football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said the player. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against Luton.
Scott made eighty-three league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Less than three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a difficult first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the team.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“It was almost another obstacle 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 for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” the player said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
