When the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the playmaker has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, never mind featuring in the top division and playing for the national team too,” the player stated previously.
“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have changed completely for me and my family.”
But how did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to his 13th birthday, however, they released him. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Instead, he chose to remain on the island and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth back was a thing I definitely needed.
“To gain some confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was probably the most crucial factors that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half replacement in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach stated at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – 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 chaos,” said the player. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in London, returned home and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to sign a contract.”
In just 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.
He made eighty-three league outings for the club while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – such was his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was selected in the league’s best XI 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 will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Less than three months later, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost several months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was yet another setback and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, playing in every game to help them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” Scott said recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
