When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden summons to the senior England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team too,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my family.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself here?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed almost several years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I definitely required.
“Building some self-belief by returning and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that led me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager Tony Vance stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his development after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
In just a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus the Hatters.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Less than three months later, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the team.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“It was almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season just as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
