Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his first call-up to the full Three Lions team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and representing England too,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for myself and my family.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in the lower tiers
His path in football has not been a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his 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 were willing to offer Scott an option and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he opted to remain on the island and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost several years of doing that. To have that little bit of childhood again was a thing I definitely required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. It was probably the most crucial things that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his early progress after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to sign 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.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I believe he will represent England and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a understood fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a challenging first season with the Cherries, waiting until October to make his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which ruled him out for almost four months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“It was yet another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible start 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 games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season just as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in every game to help them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” Scott said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
