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Back when Alex Scott made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”

That statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.

Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions squad.

His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a true blast from the past, a story rarely seen in the modern era.

Next stop? The World Cup?

“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, never mind featuring in the top division and playing for the national team too,” Scott stated in a recent interview.

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

But how did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?

Developing in the lower tiers

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

He spent over four years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.

Before he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.

Rather, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.

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

“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I really needed.

“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important things that led me to this point.”

At the age of 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their 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 his talent is obvious,” manager Tony Vance commented at the time.

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

Returning to the pro ranks

Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a trial in December 2019.

“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.

“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. From that point a certainty 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 earning his first-team debut against the Hatters.

Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.

With his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and England playmaker Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was selected in the league’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.

“No doubt, I believe he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.

Within three months later, he joined the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.

Securing his major transfer

Scott experienced a challenging first season with the Cherries, waiting until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.

His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.

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

“It was yet another obstacle and it was turning out to be quite a terrible 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 get himself fit in time.

He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, developing a formidable partnership in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the first team with the national coach.

And he has begun the current campaign equally as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the table.

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

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