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When Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”

That prediction proved to be a bit of an underestimation.

Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions squad.

His rise from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.

What’s next? A major tournament?

“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team too,” Scott stated in a recent interview.

“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”

But in what way did Alex Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself here?

Learning in the lower tiers

Scott’s path in football has been far from a conventional one.

He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school every 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.

Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.

Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.

“My form had dipped and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.

“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. Getting that little bit of childhood again was a thing I definitely needed.

“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing island football was massive for me. It was probably the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”

When he was just 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.

“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach stated back then.

“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”

Making a comeback to the pro ranks

Championship side Bristol City – chaired by islander their owner – had been tracking his development after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.

“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.

“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a deal.”

In just a year and a half, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.

Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.

With his ability 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 attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.

“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.

Within 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.

Securing his major transfer

The midfielder endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.

His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost four months.

“There was quite a good run at the close of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.

“It was almost another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first half.”

But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.

He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, developing a formidable partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the first team under the national coach.

And he has begun this season equally as strongly for his club, playing in all matches to help them to the top five in the table.

“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player said recently.

“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”