Back when the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the senior England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern era.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming 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 crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my family.”
But how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has not been a typical one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to his 13th birthday, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth back was a thing I really required.
“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“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 the coach stated at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
Within 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and England playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Less than three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the senior side with the national coach.
And he has started this season just as strongly for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
