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When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”

This prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.

Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his first summons to the senior England team.

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

Next stop? A major tournament?

“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the top division and representing England too,” the player said in a recent interview.

“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for me and my family.”

But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?

Developing in non-league

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

He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.

Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an opportunity 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 Guernsey and play for his hometown club.

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

“All I desired to chill at my home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth back was a thing I really needed.

“Building a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial things that got me where I am today.”

At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their league match at the opposition.

“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.

“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”

Returning to the professional game

Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s development after an promising beginning in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.

“The whole experience was hectic,” said the player. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a complete surprise.

“Midweek I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”

In just 18 months, still 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 still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.

Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled 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 claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, 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 his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at the club, stated previously.

Within three months later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.

Getting his major transfer

Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.

His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost several months.

“There was quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.

“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 called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness in time.

He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side with the national coach.

And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, playing in all matches to help them to the top five in the table.

“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” the player stated earlier this season.

“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”