Back when the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”
That prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Today 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a story rarely seen in the modern era.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” Scott said previously.
“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and flying over weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my friends at weekends because I missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth again was a thing I really needed.
“Building some confidence by coming back and taking part in local football was massive for me. It was perhaps the most crucial things that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match 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 his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.
He made 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was the standout performer.
With his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and national team playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s player and young player of the Year.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within 90 days after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his big move
The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, waiting until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“There was quite a good run at the end of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible start for the first half.”
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 England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season just as impressively for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” Scott said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”
