Back when the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his first summons to the full England team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, let alone playing in the top division and playing for the national team as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth again was something I definitely required.
“Building a bit of confidence by returning and playing local football was huge for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important 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 57th-minute replacement in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an promising beginning in men’s football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against Luton.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the club while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he will represent his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured 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 finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was almost 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 managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign equally as strongly for his club, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
