When the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the senior England team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my family.”
But in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to remain on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was a thing I really needed.
“To gain a bit of confidence by coming back and taking part in island football was huge for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Less than three months later, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a difficult first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to make his Premier League debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another setback and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season equally as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying the game, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and get my chance.”
