Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his first call-up to the full England team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper blast from the past, a story rarely told in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the top division and playing for England as well,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
His football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, 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 heart was not in it.
Rather, he opted to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed almost several years of that experience. To have that slice of youth again was something I definitely needed.
“To gain some confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial things that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance commented at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for England and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Within 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
The midfielder experienced a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“There was a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and it was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, developing a formidable partnership in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season equally as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” the player stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
