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Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”

This statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.

Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions team.

His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential international star is a true throwback, a story rarely seen in the modern era.

What’s next? The World Cup?

“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, let alone featuring in the top division and playing for the national team as well,” Scott said previously.

“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”

So in what way did Scott, known 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 from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.

Prior to his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an option and he remained with them for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.

Instead, he chose to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.

“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.

“All I desired to chill at my home with my friends at weekends because I missed almost several years of that experience. To have that little bit of childhood again was a thing I really required.

“Building some confidence by coming back and playing local football was massive for me. It was perhaps one of the most important things that led me to this point.”

When he was just 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.

“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated back then.

“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”

Returning to the pro ranks

Second-tier club the Robins – chaired by islander their owner – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an promising beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.

“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.

“On the Wednesday I featured for his local side in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to sign a contract.”

In just 18 months, even well before his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut versus the Hatters.

Scott made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wing-back – and sometimes in attack as a number 10 – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.

Thanks to his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.

“No doubt, I believe he will represent England and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated last year.

Less than three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.

Securing his big move

The midfielder experienced a challenging debut campaign with the club, 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 following season was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost several months.

“There was quite a good run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.

“That felt like yet another setback and the year was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first five months.”

But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.

He started five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the tournament in the host nation, forming a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.

And he has begun the current campaign just as impressively for his club, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the standings.

“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” Scott said recently.

“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better every day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”