Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the senior England team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to possible England player is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for the national team too,” the player said previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in non-league
His football journey has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could train and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at weekends because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. To have that slice of childhood again was a thing I definitely required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that got me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been tracking his development after an impressive beginning in adult football and arranged a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s best young player award, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Less than three months after, he joined the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly four months.
“There was quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained he.
“It was almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started this season just as impressively for his club, playing in all matches to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
