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Back when the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”

This prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.

Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the full England squad.

His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a proper throwback, a journey rarely seen in the modern game.

What’s next? The World Cup?

“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, never mind playing in the top division and representing England too,” the player stated previously.

“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for me and my loved ones.”

So in what way did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up at this level?

Developing in the lower tiers

His path in football has not been a typical one.

He spent over four years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to travel by air from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the club’s academy sides.

Before he turned 13, though, they released him. Bournemouth gave him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind wasn’t fully committed.

Instead, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.

“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.

“I just wanted to chill at my home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed almost four and a half years of that experience. Getting that little bit of youth again was a thing I really required.

“To gain a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing local football was massive for me. It was probably one of the most important things that got me to this point.”

When he was just 16, Scott became the youngest player in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League fixture at Phoenix Sports.

“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” manager Tony Vance commented at the time.

“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is outstanding, the way he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”

Returning to the professional game

Championship side Bristol City – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in adult football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.

“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.

“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to sign a deal.”

In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus Luton.

He went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.

Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.

At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the division’s best XI and was voted the club’s player and young player of the Year.

“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for England and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at the club, stated last year.

Within three months after, he joined Bournemouth for a understood fee of £25m.

Getting his big move

The midfielder endured a difficult first season with the club, having to wait until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.

His following season was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.

“There was quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.

“It was almost another setback and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad start for the first five months.”

But he was then called up by England for the U21 Euros – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.

He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.

And he has started this season equally as impressively for his club, featuring in every game to help them to the top five in the standings.

“To play for the national team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player stated recently.

“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and earn an opportunity.”