Back when Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the senior England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true throwback, a story rarely seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s path in football has been far from a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he opted to remain on Guernsey and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth again was something I really needed.
“To gain some self-belief by returning and playing local football was massive for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that led me to this point.”
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 substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach stated at the time.
“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 Bristol City – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring his development after an promising beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I featured 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 put pen to paper on a deal.”
In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
Scott made 83 league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s young player of the season award, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Less than 90 days later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as affected, 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,” said he.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
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 understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign just as impressively for his club, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, getting better every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
