Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the senior England squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for myself and my family.”
So how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s football journey has not been a typical 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 fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, however, they released him. The Cherries gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly several years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood again was a thing I definitely needed.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial things that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the second day I was with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Within 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
Scott endured a challenging first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being in and out of the team.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like yet another setback and the year was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, forming a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started this season just as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game 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 said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
