🔗 Share this article

Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”

That statement proved to be something of an underestimation.

Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his first call-up to the senior Three Lions team.

His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a true throwback, a journey seldom seen in the modern era.

Next stop? A major tournament?

“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the top division and playing for the national team as well,” the player said previously.

“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed completely for myself and my loved ones.”

But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?

Developing in non-league

His football journey has been far from a typical one.

He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.

Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.

Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.

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

“All I desired to relax at home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth back was something I definitely required.

“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important things that got me where I am today.”

When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.

“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented back then.

“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”

Returning to the professional game

Second-tier club the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring his development after an impressive beginning in men’s football and arranged a trial in late 2019.

“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total shock.

“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”

In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.

Scott made eighty-three league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.

Thanks to his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.

“No doubt, I think he’ll play for England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.

Less than three months after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of £25m.

Securing his big move

The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.

His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.

“There was quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.

“That felt like yet another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first five months.”

But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness in time.

He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a formidable partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the first team with the national coach.

And he has started this season equally as impressively for his club, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the table.

“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” Scott said recently.

“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”