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When the young midfielder made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”

This statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.

Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.

His rise from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.

What’s next? A major tournament?

“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the top division and representing the national team too,” the player stated in a recent interview.

“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my family.”

But how did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?

Developing in the lower tiers

His path in football has been far from a conventional one.

He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.

Before he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an option and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.

Rather, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.

“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.

“I just wanted to relax at my home with my mates at the weekend because I missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth back was a thing I definitely required.

“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that got me to this point.”

At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their league match at Phoenix Sports.

“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated at the time.

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

Returning to the pro ranks

Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s development after an promising start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.

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

“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”

In just 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.

He made 83 league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.

With his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.

“No doubt, I believe he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at the club, remarked last year.

Less than three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.

Securing his big move

Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the team.

His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.

“There was 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 almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first five months.”

But he was then selected 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 claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, developing a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.

And he has started the current campaign equally as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the standings.

“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” the player stated earlier this season.

“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”