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When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”

This prediction turned out to be something of an underestimation.

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

His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern era.

Next stop? The World Cup?

“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” the player said previously.

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

But in what way did Alex Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?

Developing in the lower tiers

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

He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.

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

Rather, he opted to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.

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

“I just wanted to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost several years of doing that. To have that slice of childhood back was a thing I really required.

“To gain some confidence by returning and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”

When he was just 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their league fixture at the opposition.

“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss 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.”

Returning to the pro ranks

Championship side Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.

“It was hectic,” said the player. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.

“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”

Within a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against the Hatters.

He went on to make 83 league outings for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age 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 earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and England playmaker 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 league’s team of the year and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.

“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.

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

Securing his major transfer

The midfielder endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, waiting until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being in and out of the team.

His second campaign was just as affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly several months.

“I had a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.

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

But he was then selected by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.

He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a strong partnership in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.

And he has started this season equally as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in every game to guide them to fifth in the standings.

“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” Scott stated recently.

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