When Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before just 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 something of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a true throwback, a journey rarely told in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that little bit of youth back was something I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial things that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his development after an impressive start in adult football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. From that point 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 making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
He made 83 league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age 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 picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he will represent his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Within three months after, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
Scott endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost several months.
“I had a decent run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“It was yet another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team under the national coach.
And he has started this season just as impressively for his club, playing in every game to help them to fifth in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for football, improving day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
