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When Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”

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

Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first call-up to the senior England team.

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

What’s next? The World Cup?

“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and playing for England too,” the player said in a recent interview.

“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my family.”

But in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?

Learning in non-league

His path in football has not been a typical one.

He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup 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 attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.

Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.

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

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

“I just wanted to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost several years of doing that. To have that little bit of childhood back was something I really needed.

“Building a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that got me where I am today.”

At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.

“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.

“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”

Returning to the professional game

Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by islander their owner – had been tracking his development after an promising beginning in adult football and gave him a trial in December 2019.

“It was chaos,” recalled Scott. “Day one I joined the under-18s, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a complete shock.

“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”

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

He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.

With his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.

At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.

“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.

Within 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.

Getting his major transfer

Scott endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.

His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.

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

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

But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in get himself fit for the tournament.

He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, developing a formidable partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.

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

“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player stated recently.

“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for the game, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”