When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That statement turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has earned his maiden summons to the full England squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing England as well,” Scott said in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But how did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
His football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before he turned 13, though, they released him. The Cherries gave him 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 chose to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed almost four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of childhood again was a thing I really needed.
“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing island football was huge for me. That proved to be probably the most crucial factors that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an promising beginning in adult football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“Midweek I featured for his local side in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league outings for the club while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at the club, stated last year.
Within 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“I had a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another setback and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in midfield with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for his club, playing in every game to help them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a player, maintain my love for football, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
