When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the senior England team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my family.”
So how did Alex Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in non-league
His football journey has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave Scott an option and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood back was a thing I really needed.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important things that got me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, Scott became the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring his development after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” said Scott. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against the Hatters.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Within 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“I had a decent run at the end of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for his club, featuring in every game to help them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
