🔗 Share this article

When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators 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 a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first call-up to the full England squad.

His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a true throwback, a story rarely seen in the modern game.

Next stop? A major tournament?

“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team as well,” Scott said previously.

“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed completely for me and my family.”

So in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?

Developing in the lower tiers

His path in football has been far from a conventional one.

He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, skipping school 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.

Prior to his 13th birthday, however, they released him. The Cherries gave him an option and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.

Instead, he chose to stay on the island and turn out for his hometown club.

“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.

“All I desired to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost several years of doing that. To have that little bit of youth again was a thing I definitely required.

“To gain some confidence by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”

At the age of 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their league match at the opposition.

“I had sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach stated 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.”

Returning to the professional game

Championship side the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his development after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.

“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a total shock.

“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”

Within a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.

He made eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.

With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and England playmaker Grealish.

At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named the club’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 game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated last year.

Within 90 days later, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.

Securing his big move

The midfielder experienced a difficult debut campaign with the club, waiting until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being in and out of the team.

His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation 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 he.

“That felt like yet another setback and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start 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 started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with the national coach.

And he has started the current campaign just as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.

“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” Scott said recently.

“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and get my chance.”