Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the senior Three Lions team.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a true throwback, a story rarely told in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a professional football player, let alone featuring in the Premier League and representing England too,” the player stated previously.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Developing in non-league
His football journey has not been a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, however, 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 heart wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. To have that slice of childhood back was something I definitely required.
“To gain some self-belief by returning and playing island football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important factors 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 was introduced as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team 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 a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus Luton.
Scott went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
Thanks to his skill to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and England playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted the club’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 boss at the club, remarked last year.
Within 90 days after, he joined the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, waiting until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly several months.
“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England 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, developing a strong partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide 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,” the player said recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
