When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first call-up to the full England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the Premier League and representing England as well,” Scott stated previously.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in the lower tiers
His football journey has not been a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer 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 opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. To have that slice of childhood again was a thing I really needed.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial factors that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager 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 a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring his development after an promising start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, 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 sign a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against Luton.
Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Within 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
Scott experienced a challenging debut campaign with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost four months.
“I had a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“It was almost another obstacle and it was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season equally as strongly for his club, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, getting better day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
