Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the full England team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, let alone playing in the top division and representing England as well,” Scott stated previously.
“It has been a crazy five or six years of my life, and things have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?
Learning in non-league
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they released him. The Cherries gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he opted to remain on the island and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was a thing I really required.
“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and playing island football was huge for me. It was perhaps the most crucial factors that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, Scott became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring 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 exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by islander their owner – had been monitoring his early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I joined the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe 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 boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
Scott experienced a difficult first season with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally 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 nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“It was almost another obstacle and it was turning out to be 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 claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, developing a formidable partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season just as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to help them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
