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Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”

That prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.

Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full England team.

His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom seen in the modern era.

Next stop? The World Cup?

“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, never mind featuring in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player stated previously.

“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for myself and my family.”

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

Developing in non-league

His football journey has been far from a typical one.

He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.

Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.

Instead, he opted to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.

“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.

“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth again was a thing I definitely required.

“Building a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”

When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.

“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager 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 pure quality.”

Making a comeback to the pro ranks

Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.

“It was chaos,” said the player. “Day one I joined the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.

“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”

Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.

Scott went on to make eighty-three league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role 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 City and national team playmaker Grealish.

At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.

“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.

Less than 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.

Getting his big move

The midfielder endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.

His following season was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.

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

“That felt like almost another obstacle and it was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first five months.”

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

He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side with the national coach.

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

“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” the player said earlier this season.

“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”