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

This statement proved to be a bit of an underestimation.

Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the full England team.

His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely told in the modern game.

Next stop? A major tournament?

“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, let alone featuring in the top division and representing England as well,” the player stated previously.

“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”

So in what way did Scott, known affectionately 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 Southampton’s youth system from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.

Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.

Instead, he opted to stay on the island and turn out for his local team.

“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.

“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed almost several years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth again was a thing I definitely required.

“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing local football was huge 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 youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.

“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach commented back then.

“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”

Making a comeback to the professional game

Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.

“It was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a total surprise.

“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”

In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against the Hatters.

Scott made 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth 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 picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.

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

“No doubt, I believe he will represent his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.

Within 90 days later, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.

Getting his major transfer

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 being in and out of the team.

His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly several months.

“There was quite a good run at the end of last season, 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 a pretty bad start for the first half.”

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

He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the senior side with the national coach.

And he has started this season just as strongly for his club, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the table.

“Representing the national team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player said recently.

“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and get my chance.”