Tright here was a time, as Alex Scott made his title at Bristol Metropolis, when he was recognized affectionately because the “Guernsey Grealish”. It was the coiffure, the low socks, the sense of journey about his midfield play. As Scott places it, the membership's supervisor, Nigel Pearson, gave him “numerous freedom to exit and nearly do what I needed”.
It modified after he made his £25m transfer to Bournemouth in the summertime of 2023; there was a better want for tactical self-discipline, for defensive duty. He turned extra of a No 8. So, much less like an early years Jack Grealish, who's now on mortgage at Everton from Manchester Metropolis.
However as Scott displays on his wonderful kind throughout the early months of the season, which has led to him successful his first call-up to the England squad for the World Cup qualifiers towards Serbia at Wembley on Thursday and Albania in Tirana three days later, there may be one little bit of the nickname that can by no means change; the half referring to Guernsey, the place he's from, which works deep into his DNA.
The 22-year-old stands to change into solely the third Channel Islander to play for the England males's crew after Matt Le Tissier, one other son of Guernsey, and Graeme Le Saux, who's from Jersey. There's additionally Scott's stepsister, Maya Le Tissier (no relation to Matt), who has 10 caps for the England ladies's aspect and was part of the squad that gained the European Championship in the summertime. What binds them is what they wish to name the islander mentality.
“For me, it simply means we're fearless,” Scott says. “I feel once we get a chance … as a result of they're powerful to come back by again residence, it's powerful to get to the mainland. I really feel like we take them after they come round.”
It talks to difficulties of a logistical nature. When Scott was on Southampton's books between the ages of eight and 12, he would fly in from Guernsey each Friday with one in every of his mother and father for coaching and matches, staying in a resort, returning on Sunday evening. He usually came visiting with Maya, who's now at Manchester United; in these days, she performed for Hampshire.
It additionally speaks to a capability to beat setbacks and there have actually been just a few of these for Scott, most not too long ago the accidents that scarred his first two seasons at Bournemouth. The most important one was to his knee final October which dominated him out for 4 months.
At the least Scott had made it as knowledgeable by then. When he was launched by Southampton and later, earlier than he turned 14, walked away from a year-long spell on the Bournemouth academy – he was not getting the game-time or enjoyment – it was troublesome to see a future for him in soccer. “Once I acquired launched by Southampton, it was fairly upsetting,” he says. “It felt like I'd dedicated 4 years of my life to this and for it to be blown away … it was heartbreaking.”
Scott's salvation was Guernsey, being again at residence the place he may reside a extra regular teenage life along with his household and buddies. He performed for an area crew and rekindled his love of the sport. What was much less regular was what he did at 16 – he performed males's soccer for Guernsey FC within the eighth-tier Isthmian League Division One South East, changing into the membership's youngest ever participant. When he excelled over the primary half of the season, Bristol Metropolis got here calling, providing him a scholarship in January 2020.
Scott says there have been instances when he couldn't see himself as knowledgeable footballer and he was slightly misplaced. “I went to school for half a 12 months [while he played for Guernsey], doing a sport course,” he says. “I didn't know what else to do. I failed PE at college. I wasn't nice at college. There was nothing on my thoughts that I actually needed to do.”
As an apart, how does a future Premier League participant fail GCSE PE? “The written coursework,” Scott replies. “I used to be no good at that. I handed English and maths, although, in order that's most essential.”
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Every part modified after Scott scored a hat-trick in his trial recreation for Bristol Metropolis; how he would seize his alternative on the membership, dashing by the youth ranks into the primary crew, his background within the males's recreation with Guernsey giving him an edge.
Scott acquired into the England setup at under-18 stage and he was an integral a part of the crew that gained the European Beneath‑19 Championship in the summertime of 2022. Then, on this previous summer time, he starred alongside Elliot Anderson in midfield because the underneath‑21s retained their European title.
Thomas Tuchel was so impressed by Anderson's efficiency within the last towards Germany that he known as him up for the senior camp in September, believing he could possibly be the answer within the No 6 position. Anderson has since began in each England recreation. Scott is within the squad as a No 8 and it'll plainly be troublesome to dislodge Declan Rice. His focus is solely on exhibiting what he can do: being courageous, which comes as commonplace, and persevering with to make individuals proud, together with Maya, who has been on the journey with him.
“My dad is along with her mum,” Scott says. “We've grown up collectively and we're very shut. We communicate most days. I couldn't be prouder of her. She can assist me out with recommendation. It's good to have somebody round who has skilled it and been across the Lionesses and England, basically.”
Scott has one other connection to the ladies's recreation through his namesake, the feminine Alex Scott, who has simply been named as an I'm A Celeb contestant and is one in every of England's most-capped gamers. “I noticed one thing the opposite day that mentioned I'd performed nicely getting known as up and occurring I'm A Celeb on the identical time,” he says with a smile. Scott is all enterprise about seizing his second.
