Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
This prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the full England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
His path in football has not been a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer him an option and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my friends at weekends because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood again was a thing I really required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and taking part in local football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive start in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
In just 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus Luton.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and national team playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“There was quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in the host nation, developing a formidable partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun this season just as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” 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 earn an opportunity.”
