When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his maiden call-up to the full England team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper throwback, a journey seldom 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 as well,” the player stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
But how did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they released him. The Cherries 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 opted to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that little bit of childhood back was something I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in local football was massive for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial factors that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half 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 his talent is obvious,” manager the coach stated at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” said the player. “Day one I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make 83 league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward 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 earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
The midfielder experienced a challenging first season with the club, having to wait 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 second campaign was just as disrupted, 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 Scott.
“It was yet another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the senior side with the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
