When Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the senior England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely told in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the top division and representing the national team too,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.
Instead, he opted to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood again was something I definitely required.
“To gain some confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
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 trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott went on to make eighty-three league outings for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for England and I think he will progress to the top of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Within 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a difficult first season with the club, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the team.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly several 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.
“It was yet another setback and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
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 England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season equally as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth 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 the game, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
