When the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the full England squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a true throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone playing in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player said in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed completely for myself and my family.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has not been a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they released him. The Cherries 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 chose to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth again was something I really required.
“Building some self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was massive for me. That proved to be probably one of the most important things that led me where I am today.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager the coach commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the second day I trained with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against Luton.
He made 83 league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and versatility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he will represent his country and I think he’ll go on to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Within three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
Scott experienced a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his top-flight 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 sidelined him for almost four months.
“There was quite a good run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and it was turning out to be 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 regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started this season equally as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player said recently.
“It’s down to me, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
