When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the senior Three Lions squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team as well,” the player 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, known affectionately 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 was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Rather, he opted to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth again was something I really required.
“Building a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager Tony Vance stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I played for his local side in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made eighty-three league appearances for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“Without question, I think he will represent England and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost several months.
“I had a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, forming a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun this season equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to help them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
