Back when the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his first call-up to the full Three Lions team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper throwback, a story seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England as well,” Scott said previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my family.”
So how did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in non-league
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an option and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost several years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood back was something I really required.
“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important things that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring 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 carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I trained with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just a year and a half, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against the Hatters.
Scott went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he will represent his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Within three months later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his big move
Scott endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the team.
His following season was equally affected, 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 Scott.
“It was almost another obstacle and it was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in get himself fit in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help 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 said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
