Back when the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This statement proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the senior Three Lions squad.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the top division and playing for the national team as well,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His football journey has not been 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 Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth back was a thing I really needed.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that got 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 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 team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I trained with the senior squad, 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 certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
With his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at the club, remarked previously.
Within three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the club, waiting until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of last season, which was good 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 the national team for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable understanding in midfield 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, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better every day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
