When the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this boy.”
This prediction proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a true throwback, a story rarely told in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of making it as a pro footballer, never mind playing in the top division and representing the national team as well,” the player stated previously.
“It has been a incredible five or six years of my life, and things have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and flying over every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“All I desired to chill at home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth back was something I really required.
“Building some confidence by coming back and playing local football was massive 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 youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s development after an impressive beginning in men’s football and arranged a trial in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a complete surprise.
“On the Wednesday I played for his local side in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
In just 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut versus Luton.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and versatility. 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 nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the EFL Championship’s best young player award, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Within three months after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
Scott experienced a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“I had quite a good run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six matches as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, developing a formidable understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the senior side with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has started the current campaign just as strongly for his club, playing in every game to help them to the top five in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player said earlier this season.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
