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Back when Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”

This statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.

Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the full Three Lions squad.

His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern era.

What’s next? The World Cup?

“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the Premier League and representing England too,” the player stated previously.

“It has 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 Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?

Developing in the lower tiers

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

He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.

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

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

“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.

“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth back was something I really required.

“Building a bit of confidence by coming back and playing local football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”

At the age of 16, Scott became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.

“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 stated back then.

“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”

Returning to the professional game

Championship side the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his early progress after an promising beginning in adult football and arranged a trial in late 2019.

“It was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined 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 London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”

In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.

Scott went on to make 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.

Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.

At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was selected in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.

“No doubt, I think he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at the club, remarked previously.

Less than 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.

Securing his big move

Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the team.

His second campaign was just as affected, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for nearly four months.

“I had 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 obstacle and it was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first five months.”

But he was then selected by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.

He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, forming a strong understanding in midfield with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.

And he has started this season just as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.

“To play for the national team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” the player said recently.

“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”