Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
This statement 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 non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” the player said previously.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed drastically for myself and my family.”
So in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early each Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer him an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he opted to remain on the island and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at weekends because I had missed almost several years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth back was a thing I really required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing local football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
At the age of 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” manager the coach stated back then.
“People have witnessed 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
Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his development after an impressive start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the second day I was with the first team, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to sign a deal.”
Within 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against the Hatters.
He made 83 league outings for the club while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s best young player honour, 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 England and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the game,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at Ashton Gate, remarked previously.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a difficult first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His following season was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost four months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in Slovakia, developing a strong understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side with the national coach.
And he has begun this season equally as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in all matches to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” the player stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, getting better every day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
