When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This statement turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with Bournemouth, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the full England squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom told in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and playing for England too,” the player stated previously.
“It’s been a crazy five or six years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for me and my family.”
But how did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he chose to stay on the island and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. Getting that little bit of childhood back was a thing I definitely required.
“Building some self-belief by coming back and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial things that led me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced 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 get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance commented back then.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Second-tier club the Robins – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive start in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled the player. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I played for his local side in London, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year 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 matches as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be one of the proudest occasions of my career,” Scott stated earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying the game, improving every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
