When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This statement proved to be something of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the senior England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a proper blast from the past, a story rarely told in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England as well,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed completely for myself and my family.”
But in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He spent four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that slice of childhood back was a thing I really required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus Luton.
Scott made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at the club, remarked last year.
Within 90 days later, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a difficult first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost several months.
“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“It was almost another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, forming a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season just as strongly for his club, playing in every game to help them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my life,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
