Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first call-up to the senior England team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a proper throwback, a story seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing England as well,” the player stated previously.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in the lower tiers
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth gave Scott an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.
Instead, he opted to stay on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.
“All I desired to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that slice of youth back was a thing I really required.
“Building some confidence by coming back and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side the Robins – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his development after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the second day I was with the first team, which was a complete shock.
“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 three goals. From that point a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.
He went on to make 83 league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player award, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he will represent his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked last year.
Within 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being 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.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was shaping up as quite a terrible start for the first half.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in Slovakia, developing a strong partnership in the middle with his teammate, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, playing in every game to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, maintain my love for football, improving every day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
